Almost A Second Chance
by Taineyah
Summary: Rogue has wished for just one thing since the destruction of the Institute ten years ago. Now that she's gotten it, can she deal with the fact that things will never be the same?
1. Living isn't easy

This fic is one of those horrible plot-bunnies that won't let me write anything else until I get this down.  Complete writer's block has occurred on "The Darkest Hour," so I'm writing this in the hopes that once I've done a chapter or two I'll be able to finish the other fic.  I've spell-checked this and re-read it and, although it looks okay, I'm not sure what anyone else is going to think of it.  Flames are welcome, just please leave your e-mail so I can reply and discuss your problems.  Thanks.

Disclaimer:  Taineyah really wants to own the X-men, but Marvel won't sell them to her for 23 dollars and 17 cents, which is all the money she has.  She'd even settle for the Brotherhood or the Acolytes, but they're worth more money than she has, too.

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_                It has been raining for two weeks and Rogue is getting sick of Kitty's incessant talking.  She tries to drown out the younger girl with her headphones, but Kitty just raises her voice, talking over the music.  The combined noise is too much for Rogue, who turns off her CD player and looks Kitty straight in the eye._

_                "Kitty, in case ya hadn't noticed, Ah don't care if the football team's plannin' a party next week.  Ah won't be goin' anyway."_

_                "You don't have to be so mean about it.  I'm just, like, trying to make conversation.  It's not like there's anything else to do."  Kitty tosses her head._

_                Rogue nods silently.  Kitty has a point.  There has been so much flooding in the Bayville area that the roads have washed out and even school has been cancelled.  The grounds of the mansion are a muddy swamp and the mansion's inhabitants have been subjected too many intense Danger Room sessions.  Even Ororo, the weather witch, hasn't been able to quell the storm's ferocity._

_                Suddenly, something catches Rogue's attention.  Or, rather, the absence of something catches Rogue's attention.  The pitter-patter of rain on the roof that has been the staccato soundtrack to life for half a month has finally quit._

_                Rogue stands up and grabs her raincoat off of the back of the door.  "Ah'm goin' outside."_

_                "Rogue, it's, like, muddy out there.  You'll get dirty and track mud into our room."  Kitty scrunches up her nose in disgust._

_                "Ah won't if Ah stay on the driveway.  It's not like Ah'm goin' far.  Ah just hafta get outta here for a while before the rain starts again."  She strides out of the room haughtily, ignoring Kitty's further protests._

_                Logan stops her in the front hall, just as she opens the main door.  He puts a gentle hand on her shoulder and studies her face. "It's after 11, Stripes.  You aren't going anywhere."_

_                "Aw… Logan, just let me out for ten minutes.  Ah'm dying in here!"  At Logan's unchanging expression, she adds, "Ah swear Ah'll just go ta the front gates and back.  Ah hafta get outta here for a few minutes."_

_                Understanding how she feels and being a bit of a loner himself, Logan reluctantly agrees.  "Fine.  I'm holding you to that ten minutes."_

_                She grins.  "Ah'll be right back."_

_                She walks quietly to the gate, shuffling her feet through some puddles and enjoying the sound.  She is extremely disappointed when she reaches the gates and sighs as she turns around.  Suddenly, the hairs on the back of her neck stand on end and she becomes aware of the sound of a low-flying jet.  She stares around incredulously and, as she watches, a formation of three fighters comes swooping in and drops missiles at the mansion.  The security system having been shorted out earlier that day when one of the sub-basements flooded, the mansion doesn't stand a chance.  An instant later, Rogue is thrown backwards by a shock-wave and knocked blissfully unconscious before she ever even realises the implications of the destruction._

                Hundreds of miles and a lifetime away, Emily Manning, the girl formerly known as Rogue, sat bolt upright, soaked in sweat, with tears running down her face and turned off her alarm clock.  As she wiped her eyes, she took note of the date.  April 5.  Ten years to the day since all of her friends...no, ten years to the day since her entire _family_ had been killed by the government.  Looking at the FBI badge on her night stand, she grimaced.  Killed by the government she now worked for as a special investigator.

                The dream came almost every night, no matter what she did about it.  The worst part wasn't having to relive that night, it was having to relive it knowing all along how it would end.  Knowing that she'd be thrown backwards by that force blast, knocked unconscious.  Knowing that her best friend, Kitty, would die believing that Rogue was angry with her.  Knowing that when she woke up, safe in her own bed, she'd be bombarded by the memories.  

                _Knowing that somewhere, one of her fellow X-men might still be alive._

                Kurt, the only potential survivor, had gone to Washington on a class trip with his civics class just before everything had gotten closed down because of the rain.  Thing was, he'd disappeared halfway through the trip, and she hadn't been able to find him.  It killed her not knowing what had happened to him.  Although logic suggested that he'd been killed by the government while in Washington, the idea that he might be out there, somewhere, had driven Rogue to become Emily Manning, FBI Agent.  It didn't matter that he was probably dead, she needed to know what had happened to him.

                Saying a silent prayer that Kurt was safe, wherever he was, Emily got showered, dressed and ready for work.  She clipped her badge to the front of her tailored pant-suit, refilled her kitten's feeding station and water bottle and walked out the front door.  Still dwelling on the past and missing her former team-mates, she got behind the wheel of her battered four-door and drove to work.

                She finally got to her building and placed the palm of her hand against the gel pad that registered her fingerprints and looked into the lens that would scan her retina, confirming her identification.  Due to a rash of security breaches over the course of the previous year, the biometric scanning system had been added earlier that month.  Every time her retina was scanned, she wondered how Scott would have dealt with the scan.  Would the scanner have recognised his eyes through his sunglasses or visor?  Or would it have picked up on tiny cracks in th ruby?

                An electronic female voice emitted from the speaker as the door slid open.  "Emily Manning.  Special Investigator on the Mutant Protection Squad.  X-gene positive."

                Emily smiled thinly, rejoicing in that victory.  Although it prevented her from getting a command position within the FBI, her X-gene couldn't prevent her from having a job there, as it had done when she was fresh out of school.  Normal humans had recognised mutants as "real people" the fall after she graduated.  Mutants now had their rights recognised and protected, although there were still regular protests and demonstrations over that.  It was a victory that she wished Professor Xavier had lived to see.  She could even understand why she was prevented from climbing the ranks.  Many of the mutant terrorist groups were still active.

                As she entered the building, a voice called her name.  "Emily!"  Agent Manning turned to see one of her team-mates on the Mutant Protection Squad, Harry Carroll.  "There's a new case on your desk.  Someone called in some information about a possible testing facility.  You're part of the pair heading out to investigate."

                Testing facility.  Emily's least favourite words to hear in her line of work, but ones she heard all too often.  People, often former government officials, ran mini-hells all over the country, dissecting and torturing mutants.  They were outlawed, but most people still feared and hated mutants enough to not call in if they knew where one was.  When one was called in, it was immediately investigated, as it had probably been being noticed for months before someone got up the courage to say anything.

                Emily nodded.  "Ah'll go read the file."  

                She quickened her pace to a near run, anxious to get on the road to find out if it was true.  She slammed open her office door and rushed inside.  Sure enough, there was a brown file marked "Urgent" on her desk.  She scanned the first page.  An anonymous caller had seen a group of unusual looking people, presumably mutants, being unloaded from a truck and shoved forcibly into an old warehouse near Green Bay, Wisconsin.

                She read the descriptions of the unusual people.  A couple of overly huge guys.  A young woman with purple skin.  A young man with bat-wings.  They were definitely mutants.  She looked at the plane ticket and investigation orders.  She was to go, along with Kathy Angel, to take a look at things.  If there was _any_ suspicious activity, they were going to be issued a warrant immediately.  As usual, the local authorities refused to have anything to do with the complaint, not wanting to get mixed up in things where mutants were involved.

                Emily closed the file and put it in her briefcase just as Kathy walked in.  "Do you need to say good-bye to anyone?  We'll be gone a couple of days."

                "No.  Ah'm ready ta go."  Emily's smile was bitter.  She'd missed her chance to say good-bye to anyone who mattered ten years before and no one wanted to date The Untouchable.

                "Then let's get out of here."  

                One of the few non-mutants on the MPS, Kathy's tone was always rude and abrupt when working with her team-mates.  Both her parents and her grand-parents had been mutants, and it had been something of a shock and disappointment for her family when Kathy hadn't inherited her family's telekinesis.  Although it protected her from discrimination, Kathy was the only one in three generations who didn't have the power, and her mutant cousins had always made fun of her.  The result was that she was bitter towards most mutants, despite having devoted her life to protecting them.

                Emily picked up the suitcase that she kept packed in the corner of her office and followed Kathy out the door, only pausing for a moment to remember if her kitten had enough food to last her for the rest of the week.

***

                After enduring the silence of her partner and dropping her things off at a hotel, Agent Manning found herself standing with Agent Angel outside a tall, forbidding warehouse.  There were no windows and no signs that there was anyone within, aside from a few cars scattered in the parking lot.  Rusting metal beams stood in sharp contrast to the drab grey exterior.

                For an instant, Emily felt like Rogue again.  She half expected to hear Scott's voice telling the X-men to be careful and remember their plan because Magneto was in there and expecting them.  Tears sprang to her eyes.  That was impossible, as Scott and Magneto were dead, Magneto having died of a stroke three years ago.  It seemed strange that part of her even missed Magneto, one of her former team's enemies.

                Emily mentally shook her head.  She was here to do her job.  So what if the building called up old memories.  She had to go up to the front door and ask her questions.  If she found evidence that the anonymous caller was right, she'd have a warrant and a team in there within three hours.

                With a nod to Agent Angel, Emily strode confidently up to the front door and rang the doorbell.  An middle-aged man slid open a security window and peered at her angrily.

                "What do you want?"

                "Ah'm with the FBI, and Ah was wondering if Ah could talk ta the owner of this buildin'."

                The man grunted.  "You are.  I'm Mark Johnston." 

                "We've heard some rumours that you may have some X-gene positive individuals here?"  Agent Angel said questioningly.

                "What?"

                "We heard that ya had mutants here," Emily sighed.

                "Then you've heard wrong.  I don't employ filthy mutants.  I hired a couple a few years back, and they were nothing but trouble.  Since then, I run a genetically pure establishment, thank you very much."

                Emily winced at the phrase "genetically pure," but said nothing.

                "You won't mind if we take a look inside, then?"  Kathy knew that, if he said they couldn't, they'd be able to consider that evidence enough that something was wrong.

                "You aren't coming in here."

                "Why not?" Emily asked.

                "I remember seeing you on the news a few years back--you were part of some mutie freak squad.  You haven't changed much and those streaks in your hair are hard to miss.  You're a mutant and, like I already said, this is a genetically pure establishment."

                Emily kicked herself for not dying her hair.  People still remembered her from when the X-men had been revealed as mutants in Bayville.  She knew that, and knew that it made her life that much harder.  Despite all that, she'd never changed her hairstyle in the slightest.  Sure, the first year or so after the mansion was destroyed, she was worried enough about her own safety to wear a bandana, but that was the only change she'd ever made.  The streaks were what had earned her the nickname Stripes from Logan and, aside from the clothes she'd been wearing that night, which she still had, the streaks in her hair were her last souvenir of her home.  Everything else had been destroyed, and she'd never been able to find a photograph of any of her friends.  

                Instead of cursing at the man, Emily smiled civilly and said, "Thank you."

                The two agents turned away and headed back to their car.  At the car, Kathy pulled out her cell phone and called headquarters to get a warrant in place.  They'd be going in within three hours.

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All I'm asking for is one review, positive or negative, it doesn't matter.  Heck, even if I don't get one review, it won't matter.  This is a head clearing excercise to try to be able to work on my other story.  Thanks for reading!  Buh Baiz!

Tainz


	2. Entering the Place

                You guys requested it, and I'm postin' it, just for you!!!  I think that this story has more potential than I originally thought, so I'm going to continue it.  Please read my other stories, because I feel that they're better examples of my writing!  As I thought that no one would read this, I made a pact with myself to do shout outs.  So, shout outs will appear at the end of the chapter.

Disclaimer: Taineyah does not own any of the characters.  They all belong to Marvel comics, with the exceptions of the agents on the MPS.

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                Emily twirled a streak of white hair around her finger as the team approached the car.  Four additional agents and a full SWAT team.  Obviously, that "anonymous" caller was someone very trustworthy.  Emily picked up her video camera to make a record of what they'd find inside.  On their team, Emily was the "techie," assigned to look after computers they found during their investigations, and any digital recordings that they had to make.  Of the six agents present, Kathy was the only one who was X-gene negative and, therefore, in charge of the operation.  Kathy took the warrant from Harry Carroll and started towards the building, the agents in tow and the SWAT team positioning themselves appropriately for a fight.  

                The security window slid open and Mark Johnston's eyes widened.

                "Sir, we have a warrant to search the premises.  Please unlock the door or we're going to have to use force."  Kathy's demeanour was cool and calm, as always.

                Johnston's face fell.  "By force, you mean that gang of gun toting nuts, don't you?"

                "Sir, the SWAT team will only be used if you refuse us entry."

                Johnston closed the security window and, for an instant, Emily wondered if they _were_ going to have to use the SWAT team.  Just as Kathy cast a glance over her shoulder, the door swung open, allowing the team entry.

                As was his usual role, Harry stayed next to Johnston, ensuring that the suspect didn't escape.  Harry was the team member with the best chances of stopping someone that tried to run.  His ability was to release a cloud of paralysing pheromones at will, which would stop anyone in their tracks until he released the neutralising pheromones that would allow the person movement again.

                The first thing that hit Emily about the interior of the building was the smell.  Sweaty, unwashed human.  There was definitely something off in this place.  Every step she took in, the smell got that much more powerful, and was joined by another powerful aroma.  Rot.  

                All of the agents were gagging by the time they'd taken ten steps in.  The place was dimly lit and the building felt filthy.  There was no visible filth.  It just seemed dirty.  Emily remembered other disgusting places she'd been.  The Brotherhood boarding house, for one.  

                She allowed her old identity of Rogue to filter forwards in her mind and allowed the training she'd had as an X-man to take over.  She'd used this technique before to get through disgusting and horrifying situations.   As Rogue, she had been strong and alone, capable of handling any situation and mentally making fun of anyone weaker than herself.  She had believed herself stronger then.  Stronger than she was now.

                She was taping the interior of the building as she walked.  As soon as she remembered that, she swallowed back the vomit that was creeping up her throat and began to speak.

                "It smells really bad in here.  There's somethin' rottin' and Ah can smell people.  That, as you know has nothin' ta do with mah mutation.  Anyone can smell it." 

                Emily opened the first door to her left with a gloved hand.  She walked in, and was disgusted to see a metal table with restraints.  Various nasty-looking devices lay on a trolley next to it.  One of them, she recognised.

                "That collar there, it's a genetic inhibitor.  Ah've encountered that device before.  It's an extremely painful method of blocking a mutant's...Ah mean, an X-gene positive individual's abilities."  Her commentay continued as she described exactly what she was seeing, in case the picture didn't come out clear.  

                She heard the wail of a siren.  The medical team had arrived.  She was glad.  From the looks of things, they were going to need the medics.

                She felt like crying as she opened the door to the next room.  It was her responsibility to go through first, getting an undisturbed picture of the potential crime scene and she was scared of what she might find.  The other agents were moving behind her, labling items as they went.   As she entered the second room, Emily cried out.

                "Mah God!"  There was a man lying on the table in this room.  His entire body was covered in iridescent scales, but despite their shimmer, they had no gloss.  The man was breathing, but Emily could barely believe he was alive.  Large portions of his scaly skin had been torn away completely, while others were hanging like flaps.

                She called for the medics, who came rushing in to help the man.  Unable to watch, she moved on to the next room.  Then the next.  She went down the entire hall this way, most of the rooms having dead or dying mutants lying on the stainless steel tables.

                She turned the corner at the end of the hall and the stench became so overwhelming that she nearly vomited.  There were bars along the walls of the hall and, as she got closer, it became apparent that this hall was used for holding mutants.  Large and small mutants were visible in the cells.

                "Kenneth!" she called, and one of the agents came rushing up behind her.  "Get these cells open!"

                Kenneth was incredibly strong, the result of his "X-gene positive nature."  He started tearing the     

cell doors off as Emily passed them with her video camera. 

                "We can't leave them in there while we find the keys," she said to her camera.  "Ah know it's in violation of protocol ta destroy any part of the scene, but these people are more important than any protocol."  She knew that her superiors would feel the same.

                Every cell contained a mutant with scars and half-healed wounds.  She turned and watched Kenneth tear the cell doors off.  A few of the mutants ventured out into the hall, but most seemed too weak to get off the floor, where their only bedding was rotting, filthy blankets.

                Voice cracking, she continued her narration.  "These people lie in 8 foot by 8 foot cells, more of cages, really.  From the smell and appearance of these individuals, it is immediately apparent that they have not been given the opportunity to wash in quite some time."

                She felt a gentle hand brush her hair, just at one of the streaks, and she whirled around, ready to warn whoever it was that they couldn't touch her, or they'd get hurt.  She was face to face with an individual slightly taller than herself.  Long stringy hair, too dirty to distinguish the colour, dangled across his face, obscuring Emily's view of his eyes.  Fur that may once have been soft, but was now encrusted with grime and a substance that looked horribly like dried blood, appeared soot-black and matted.

                He shook his head, tossing his hair back and she saw the familiar golden eyes.  Then she noticed the tail.  And the hands.  The three fingered hands.  It had to be...

                Then he spoke, and she was sure.  "Rogue."  His voice was low and raspy, as though he hadn't used it in a long time, but it could only be him.

                Tears streaked down her face and she embraced the dirty figure.  "Kurt.  Oh mah god.  You're alive."  Her voice was a virtual monotone, she was so shocked.

                A tear trickled down his cheek, cleaning enough of the dirt and grime away that a streak of brilliant blue appeared in sharp contrast to the grey dust.   "Rogue.  You came for me.  I do not know vhat took the Professor so long to find me, but I have never been more glad to see anyvun in my whole life."

                At this, Rogue, who thought of herself solely as Rogue for the first time in years, burst into hysterical sobs.  He didn't know.  No one had ever told him.  Though she felt that she should be holding him while he cried, she sank to the floor and he put his arms around her.

                "What's going on?"  Kenneth asked, rushing over.

                Kurt looked up.  "My sister has not seen me in a very long time."  The reply was simple, and spoken calmly, belying the tears running down his face.  "Und I have not seen her."  His voice cracked on the last word.

                Kenneth nodded, quietly took the camera from Rogue and continued her commentary.

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                I just thought I'd take a moment to explain something.  Some of you might be wondering why Rogue didn't take her "real" name, Marie, instead of Emily.  The thing is, in the comic book, Rogue's real name is never revealed.  There was one issue where she nearly told Gambit, but he told her that some things were meant to remain secrets.  I recognise that many fans have accepted the movie-name, Marie, as Rogue's name, but I can't picture her as a Marie.  Marie sounds too girly to me.  Emily might sound too girly to some of you, but I used to know a girl named Emily, and she was a total tom-boy.  Also, I chose the name Manning as her last name because she was Rogue the X-_man_ until she decided to leave that identity behind for her own safety.

                I'm sure that none of you truly felt the need to know that, but nyeah.  I felt like telling you.  And it doesn't spoil the story, because it won't ever be explained.

[l.m.]:  I can't answer any questions regarding any known bad-guys, but there will be no RoLa whatsoever.  I'm a Romy fan.

Beboots:  I re-introduced him, just for you.  Thanks for your positive feedback!

Rogue Warrior Spirit:  Yes, poor Rogue.  I feel bad for putting her through this.

LiLRogue: I will, thanks!

Rageful Jewel: Thanks for all your feedback!!  I'm glad that you agree that things still wouldn't be perfect!  I'm sorry to hear about the loss of your family member.  And yeah, Rogue had it pretty bad.

Lucky439:  Thanks!

ChaosCat:  I'm glad you like my OCs.  I worked pretty hard to make them not perfect, but still cool.  And yeah, I was sad to kill off the X-men, more than you were to read them. I cried really hard!

ishandahalf:  I didn't want her to be all government agentie either, but I figured she would do that, in a desperate attempt to find Kurt.

Neurotic Temptress:  Writer's block: gone!  And thanks for liking the way I paired Rogue up with Kathy Angel.  I agree that it's sad, but it'll be a kinda happy ending....sorta...maybe....

Rogue15:  Thanks much!!!

AG:  Well, you now know that Magneto's dead, but what about Mystique and the Brotherhood and the Acolytes?  You never know.....

Yumiko:  Glad you liked it!

Eclipse:  I'm really glad you like this!!!

LeopardDance:  You think it could be a gem in hiding?  I'm flattered!!!!!!!  I hope you think the rest keeps up quality-wise

Diana:  Inventive?  Someone else must have done it!  I never come up with originality!  Do I?  Have I broken the originality barrier?  I hope so!!!

Please R+R

Tainz


	3. The Past, Revisited

                Hey guys!  Shout outs follow.  

Kurt:  As Tainz's temproary disclaimer, it is my duty to inform you that all recognisable characters belong to Marvel Comics and Fox.  Mind you, if it meant I'd get as much pizza as I've gotten lately, I'd happily sell myself to Tainz!

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                Kurt was hooked up to an IV to treat severe malnourishment and dehydration but he wasn't in bad shape, compared to most of the other mutants they'd pulled out of the testing factility.  Rogue felt horrible that he had been starved for the last ten years, remembering the perpetually hungry teenager af her X-men days.  Finally, she took a deep breath and opened the door to go talk to him, rather than staring at him through the window.

                He turned a freshly clean blue face to her when he heard the door open.  His face split into a huge grin when he saw who it was.

                "Hello Rogue."

                "Hi, Elf."  She nearly choked on his old nickname, but she wanted to get him into higher spirits before she told him.  "How are ya doin'?"

                "Much better.  I have a full stomach for the first time in....  How long has it been anyvay?  Three or four years?"

                Her reply was so quiet that he had to ask her to repeat it.  

                "It's been ten years."

                His eyes grew wide in astonishment.  "Ten years?  It vas that hard to find me?"

                "Ah searched the whole time.  Even when logic said Ah'd never find you, Ah kept looking."

                "Vhy didn't the Professor help?  Or the others?  Surely they tried, too.  It vasn't as though I vas in another country."  He was watching her carefully.

                Rogue hung her head.  She'd hoped that he wouldn't ask questions right off.  At least not those ones.

                "Kurt, things have changed a lot since ya got taken."

                "Vell, obviously.  I am in a normal hospital, aren't I?  I never vould have been able to be here back then.  The Professor must be so happy that mutants und humans are getting along."  It was obvious to Rogue that Kurt was forcing himself to be like she remembered him, happy-go-lucky.  He clearly didn't want her to feel bad, but she could see the decade of torture and pain in his eyes.

                "He never knew."

                "_Was_ _willst du damit sagen_?  Are you saying that he...he's...dead?"  Kurt's eyes filled up.

                "Yes.  He never even knew that ya were missin'."

                Kurt's voice was soft, choked.  "How did it happen?"

                Rogue brushed her hair back from her face as she watched the jets in her mind's eye, watched her world come crashing to an end.  Tears rolled down her cheeks as she started to speak.  

                "There was an explosion at the mansion.  Ah was right outside.  Military jets bombed the place out.  The others...they never even knew what hit them."  She wanted to say more.  Like how much she missed them and how glad she was that he was there, but her voice wasn't working and her throat hurt.

                Kurt stared at her in silence and she knew what he was thinking.  "Then..."

                "Yeah.  We're the only X-men left."  She hardly managed to choke it out around sobs.

                "But, Herr Logan...  He could survive anything."

                "Ah know.  Ah thought the same thing.  That nothin' could kill him.  Ah searched the rubble 'til Ah found his skeleton.  Adamantium doesn't burn, y'know."  She closed her eyes against the memory of digging through the remains of the mansion and dragging out the shining metal monstrosity.  Not a cell of flesh had remained on the bones.

                "He was the only one Ah could find anything of ta bury.  Ah buried him in the woods at the back of the grounds.  No one knows.  No one ever even came ta take a look at the damage.  The ruins are still there, just as they were last time I was there."

                Kurt was crying openly.  Just when he thought that he was getting his life back, it had been torn away from him.  Rogue wrapped her arms around him and, careful not to touch his skin, rocked him back and forth like a mother comforting a child.

                "Ah know.  Trust me, Ah know.  Ah've cried mahself ta sleep almost every night for a decade.  Ah have nightmares."

                Kurt was shuddering and shivering as he cried, and Rogue could feel every bone in his thin body through the hospital gown.  They sat like that for nearly an hour before either of them spoke again.  Anyone passing by would have mistaken them for two scared teenagers.  Though Kurt had aged, you couldn't see it through his fur, unless you looked at his eyes, and Rogue, wardrobe and make-up choices aside, didn't look more than a year older than she'd been the last time they'd seen each other.  They could have walked back through time into the Institute, and no one would have questioned that they should be there.

                Finally, Kurt pulled away.  "Vhere am I going to go now?"  He wiped glistening liquid from his face with the back of his hand.

                "Ah have an apartment you can come ta, if ya think ya can stand mah cat."  Rogue understood what he really meant by asking questions unrelated to their friends.  He meant that he didn't want to talk about it.  He needed time to absorb it and Rogue knew that she had to give it to him.  It had, after all, taken years for her to accept the knowledge.

                Kurt nodded.  "_Danke_.  I should be getting out of here in a few days.  I vouldn't vant to end up on the streets."

                Rogue stood and looked at her watch.  "Oh no!  Ah have to get back ta work.  Ah'm late.  Oh no, Angel's gonna kill me!"

                "Who?"

                "Kathy Angel.  She's in charge of mah team.  Ah'm really sorry, Kurt.  Ah hafta go."

                "I understand.  I vill be okay here on my own for avhile."

                "Ah promise ta come back when Ah'm off!"  Rogue was running out the door before she said the last word.

***

                Kathy glared at Rogue, who was staring off into space thinking about Kurt. 

                "Your actions have been unprofessional and far too personal today."

                Rogue shook her head, bringing Kathy back into focus.  "Ah'm sorry, what were you saying?"

                "If you have a conflict of interest, you should refuse an assignment.  You know that that is part of our policies here.  You will likely face an inquiry."

                Rogue, already emotionally strained, blew up.  "How on earth was Ah supposed ta know that Kurt was there?  Ah've thought he was dead for a decade!  Ah've finally found the one survivin' member of mah family and you want me to "face an inquiry?"  How the hell would you have reacted if it were one of your precious little cousins in there?  Wouldn't you have been upset?"

                Kathy's voice became louder--Rogue's mention of family had touched a nerve.  "As I understand your file, Kurt cannot possibly be your brother.  I have read your entire history."

                "Mah file's a load o' bull Ah cooked up.  There's hardly a word of reality in there.  You don't even know mah real name."

                "You would not have become an agent if that were true.  The FBI requires complete and truthful records of your life."

                "The FBI wanted ta get mutants working for them so bad, they didn't bother verifying mah records.  They just sent me ta see a telepath and they went by the telepath's word that Ah wasn't going ta do anything bad.  The telepath told them Ah'd lied on my records, and all they did was ask if there was a good reason.  Ah said yes and they shut up."

                Kathy opened and closed her mouth a few times.  She hadn't expected this kind of response from her underling.  "Fine then.  Please go do your job.  There are four computers in the third room to the left.  We need to know who's been funding this operation and how many X-gene positives have come through here.  If any of them have been taken out of here alive, we need to know where they are."

                Rogue didn't bother to answer, she just marched down the hallway to the computer room, seething.  How dare anyone question that Kurt was her brother?  Even if Raven Darkhölme hadn't been a "mother" to both of them, Kurt had lived with her at the Institute.  That in itself was enough to make her call him family.

                Ignoring the ever-present stench of the warehouse, where everything was still being held, Rogue started tapping away at a computer angrily.  It only took her a minute to find the most shocking piece of evidence she'd ever laid eyes on.  As soon as she saw it, she was sure that this operation was bigger than anything she'd encountered before.

                The screen was filled with sums of money.  1000 dollars here, 400 dollars there.  In bookkeeping, that wasn't unusual.  What was strange was that every penny of it had come from the United States government.

                "KATHY!  Get in here!"

**********************************************************************************

Was willst du damit sagen?  - What do you mean?/What are you saying?

Shout outs!!!

LadySilverDragon: You wanted more?  You got more!

ChaosCat:  I'm glad you liked the scene where they found each other.  I successfully made myself cry when I wrote it.

Gecko (once again): Marie is a name for a fragile person, I agree.  As for Romy, I'll never tell!!!!

Rogue Pryde:  I'm glad you like "Kurt Rogue sibling stuff."  There will be lots more of it in this!

Gub-man:  I hope that the way Rogue told Kurt worked for you.  I didn't know how else to do it.

RogueLeBeau:  Thanks

Neurotic Temptress:  Sorry I made you lose your appetite!  Didn't mean to.  On the Romy front....I'm not telling.  You'll have to keep reading to find out if Rogue ever gets a boyfriend.  I was glad she met Kurt too.  I just couldn't stand him being dead.  When I wrote the original version of the first chapter, Rogue was the only survivor, with no other potential survivors.  It was just gonna be a fic about Rogue dealing with the memories on the tenth anniversary, but those damned characters never do what I tell them.  When I read back what I've typed, it's usually completely different from what I meant to say!!!

roguehobbit:  Sorry friend, but Kitty didn't make it.  Only Rogue and Kurt did....  At least, unless I decide otherwise later! 

x-silver-saffire-x:  It could be why she changed it... I never even thought about that idea.  I still can't picture her as Marie!  I mean, I'm Taineyah, but I call myself Tainz.  My name is de-girlyable, but Marie?  I can't picture her parents going "oh how sweet.  lets name this independant-spirited, amazingly strong baby Marie."  But then, she was a normal baby, wasn't she?  Oh well.  Either one of us could be right!!!  ; )

Beboots:  Honey, breathe.  That's better.  And I promise it isn't finished.  There's quite a bit more to go, and there will be a sequel!!

Lucky439:  I am continuing, as per your request.

Sigma:  I can't believe you think it's so great!  I mean, I'm only 16.  Surely there are better authors out there for you to read!!

Eclipse (rachlb_30@hotmail.com:  I did cry when Rogue found Kurt.

Gecko:  I'm glad you like the theory.  Can you direct me to some other FBI/CIA stories?  Thanks.  I haven't seen any others, but I like the idea.

Yumiko:  Thanks.

Rogue15:  Yay!!  you like the name Emily!  I'm really glad!!

jacombo:  I feel bad for putting the characters in such horrible situations.  And things aren't gonna get better very quickly!

R+R and I'll shout out to you!!!!


	4. A Glimpse of Reality

                Hey guys, I got my first negative rant today!  And, can you believe it, it was from someone I know and love who's been away virtually all summer.  Talk about mean!  An extremely long shout-out to him appears at the end of this chappie.  All other shout-outs are after his.

                Also, I'd like to apologise for the shortness of this chapter.  I was too angry at The Pickle-Jar to write properly, but I wanted to put something up for you guys to read.

Kurt:  The characters you recognize do not belong to Taineyah!

************************************************************************                

                "Kathy, they funded it.  That's all there is ta it.  They don't trust mutants.  They still hate us.  Look at the screen, for God's sake.  Ah tend ta believe what Ah'm seein'.  It wouldn't be the first time the government has pulled somethin' like this."  Rogue scrolled down the computer screen, demonstrating the pages and pages of meticulously kept financial records.

                "Agent Manning, I refuse to believe this until I see substantial evidence that it's true.  Anyone can put the words 'US Government' on a computer screen."

                Rogue walked over to a filing cabinet and pulled open a drawer, digging through the files quickly. 

                "What are you doing, Agent?"  Kathy approached Rogue, reaching out to pull her back from the cabinet.

                "Ah'm tryin' ta find your 'substantial evidence,'" Rogue replied.  "If ya touch me, Ah'll zap ya.  The government killed mah family, they aren't gonna get away with torturin' mah brother."

                Agent Angel stepped away as Rogue peeled off her left glove and held out her hand menacingly, still pawing through the drawers with her right hand.  Rogue skimmed the titles on the file folders and finally pulled one out.  She flipped it open, holding it with one hand and nodded to herself.

                She extended it towards Agent Angel and smirked bitterly. "Is that enough evidence for ya?"

                As Rogue pulled her glove back on, Kathy read the first page of the file.  Then the next.  She glanced at the rest, her facial expression crumbling through shock, disbelief and pain before settling on anger.

                The file was filled with orders to destroy 'experiments,' most of which were signed by senators and other politicians.  A couple were even signed by the vice-president and the secretary of state.

                Kathy pointed at one, one of the few that had the 'experiment's' name on it.  "Steven Angel... he's my second cousin.  He went missing just before the end of the Dark Ages."

                Rogue blinked in shock at hearing the phrase "Dark Ages" come from Kathy's lips.  Normally, it was a phrase used by mutants to describe the time before they'd been given their rights.  Kathy always disdained the use of "mutie-slang," the special phrases that mutants used to describe their troubles.

                Rogue looked at the destroy-order's date.  "He's only been gone about a month."

                Kathy nodded silently, then she spoke, voice choked.  "He was here for almost four years."  A single tear dripped down her face.

                "Now ya have some idea how Ah felt when Ah saw Kurt."  Rogue heard the words flow from her mouth and immediately felt guilty.  "Ah'm sorry 'bout your cousin."

                Kathy nodded.  "What are we going to do about this?"

                "Ah think we should treat this like a normal case."

                Kathy paused for a minute, clearly thinking.  "That's probaly our best route.  Be careful to document everything in full."  Her short, businesslike tone had returned.

                Rogue nodded her acknowledgement then turned back to the computer as Kathy left the room to return to her portion of the investigation.

***

                _"_Do you know who did it yet?" Kurt asked.

                "Not a clue," she lied, not wanting to even think about the investigation.

                "Vhen you find out, tell me," he commanded bitterly.  "I vant to face them and tell them vhat it is like to lose ten years of your life."

                She was half tempted to tell him, but she wasn't allowed to reveal details yet, and she didn't want him to get anymore upset.  His cheeriness of the afternoon had evaporated, and he merely seemed angry.  He wouldn't tell her what he'd gone through, but he was revealing more through the sentences that he cut short than he could have if he'd sat and explained it all.

                She now knew that he'd had an inhibitor collar on virtually all the time.  She couldn't understand how he'd survived the pain.  She felt so sorry for him.

                "You'll probably be testifyin' at the trial, when we have enough evidence.  Ya can tell them then."

                "You'd better find them, Rogue."  An unspoken threat hung in the air, although Rogue wasn't sure if it was a threat against her or against the monsters who had tortured him for so long.

*************************************************************************

Shout outs:

The Pickle-Jar:  Look, you dumbass, I had reasons other than Kurt being my favourite to pick him to survive.  I thought about using each of the others in turn.  Wanna know my reasons for not picking them, aside from the fact that I didn't want to risk the other survivor becoming Rogue's love interest?  Here goes:

Wolverine: He's too dangerous when he's semi-insane.  He'd probably kill Rogue,  besides which, there's no way they would have been able to keep him in that place for ten years.  And, in addition to that, I don't want to screw around with his sanity again. I feel too sorry for him to do that.

Cyclops:  I don't like him and therefore my representation of his character would be skewed and incorrect.  Due to the fact that some people like him, I didn't want to screw him up too badly.

Jean Grey:  Come on, Jean, in a situation like this?  Besides which, Evo-Rogue and Evo-Jean don't get along very well.  I wanted the survivor to be someone Rogue liked.

Beast:  I don't know his character well enough to write him.

Spyke:  Not enough is known about his past to write a fully three-dimensional character sketch of him and have realistic reactions to various situations.

Shadowcat:  She's a valley girl.  She wouldn't have survived the filthy conditions of that place. It's going to take me awhile to develop her into a non-ditzy character in my other fics.  I needed someone who wasn't a ditz. (No offense to Shadowcat fans.  I like her.  She's in my top five favourite X-men of all time, right behind Kurt, Logan, Rogue and Remy.  She just isn't suited to this kind of story.  Sorry.)

Jubilee:  I don't like the fact that she's present in Evolution.  Original Jubes was a lot younger than the others.

Iceman:  I just couldn't picture him in this kind of situation.  I mean, he's Bobby Drake.  

Multiple:  He's too young, about twelve.  I'm not into child abuse.  Or having him basically grow up in a testing facility.  I needed someone over 16.

Magma:  I don't know enough about her.

Sunspot:  I don't know enough about him.

Cannonball:  I didn't want two southern accents having conversations, as it's too hard to distinguish who's speaking.

Storm:  She's claustrophobic.  I was _not_ going to torture her _and _put her in a tiny cage.  Cruel and Unusual Punishment much?

The Brotherhood:  What would they be doing at the mansion so that some of them got killed off?  Besides, I might decide I need all of them alive at a later date.

The Acolytes:   See the Brotherhood.

So, you jerk, your rant was completely unfounded.  And you completely ignored the fact that I've done two fics in which Kurt was never even mentioned!!  And I'm working on a third one without Kurt as the main character.  So you can take your stupid little rant and shove it!  Next time you feel like writing something like that, wait until you can say it to my face, got it?  Don't post it up as a review.  

And another thing!  As for Wolverine not being able to get seriously hurt by anything except napalm, to your knowledge:  Napalm burns or heats up or has something to do with burning, chemical or otherwise, last time I heard anything about it.  That night, the Institute was hit with at least three missiles and it burned, basically to the ground.  Between the injuries incurred in the initial explosion, the burns received in the fire and the lack of oxygen due to smoke inhalation and the fire using up the most of the oxygen anyway, I don't think that even Wolverine's amazing healing factor could handle the destruction of the Institute.  So there! 

Okay, sorry that got so long.  Here are the rest of the shout-outs:

Sigma1: Sorry to hear that you had to change your name.  That sucks!  *hands Sigma1 a prettiful flower that sings a happy song*  I'm glad you think so!!  Mwah!

The Pickle-Jar: I'm still mad!!!  No prezzies for you!!!

Thunder_Fox (aka Eclipse):  They might....  I'm not telling. *hands Eclipse a Remy plushie*  Dat's all da hints you're gettin', Chere.

Lady Trunks:  Don't worry.  I couldn't not have his adoptive parents alive.  I just haven't gotten there yet!!  And Thanks!  *hands Lady Trunks a picture of Kurt that Tainz drew*  Okay, so I'm not the best Artist.  It's the thought that counts!

Jazzy:  Remy is definitely alive, along with all of the other Acolytes and Brotherhood.  The only "bad guy" from those two teams who is dead is Magneto.  I'm continuing now, just for you, even though I'm not happy with this chappy!  *hands Jazzy Magneto's helmet*

shadow-fire3:  Thank you thank you thank you!!!!  I'm going to keep writing!!  Cross my heart!!!  *hands shadow-fire3 a Rogue plushie*

roguehobbit:  I hate the government.  I'm a consiracy theorist, I'm sad to say.  And, yes, if I didn't have it planned carefully, the whole thing could get bad for Rogue.  *hands you a tinfoil hat*  Now the aliens that the government is secretly harbouring can't read your mind.  The CIA killed John Lennon!!! *runs around insanely*

Green Eraser/Gecko:  Be patient, my child.  This is nowhere near being over!!!  And it had to stop there because my boyfriend, the Pickle-Jar, who I'm extremely mad at right now, said it was more effective than the original ending I had planned for that chappy. *gives Green Eraser/Gecko a picture of Rogue and Remy sitting on a bench together*

x-silver-safire-x:  Glad you liked it!!  *hands x-silver-safire-x a Canadian flag*

Yumiko:  Whether or not Rogue is going to be paired up with anyone is a carefully guarded secret, one that I haven't even revealed to my best friend, Amieva, or my boyfriend, The Pickle-Jar, who I'm _still_ mad at.  I won't deny or confirm anything.  * hands Yumiko an encoded secret message, which reads: 9 12 20 6 22    15 18 22 25 7      16 26 9 7 22      17 6 13 20 22  (4=w  23=d)*   If you can figure that out, you will have your answer.

jacombo: Yeah, Kitty's dead.  Sorry to disappoint.  It's just too far fetched if any of the others mystically appear.  And I'm glad you liked the way Rogue told Kurt.  I agonised over that.  *hands jacombo a box of yummy cookies* Thanks for the lovely long review!!!

Lucky439:  I know.  I feel bad for Kurt too.  *hands Lucky439 another clue to Yumiko's secret message, so that Lucky might figure it out.  Clue reads:  backwards alphabet.  answer in German.*

ishandahalf:  Mush.....hmmmm....check out Yumiko's secret message and Lucky439's clue and see if you can't figure out the answer to the mush question.  I'm glad you're liking this!!!  *hands ishandahalf a whole mess of mushy cereal and, when ishandahalf looks disgusted, whips out a Kurt plushie*

Anyroad, sorry about the short chappy.  The next one will be a lot longer, promise!!!!  And, if you want more spoilers, check out my shout outs to Yumiko and Lucky439.  The spoilers are encoded.

Tainz

Don't forget to R+R!!!


	5. Everything's Gone?

            Hey all, I'm back!!!  I should have had this done over a week ago, but I was having trouble getting back on track after my vacation.  I got a brand new guitar!!!  And I had to clean my room.  According to my mum, having a hip-deep pile of stuff covering my entire room is not organised.... Go figure.  And I'm not kidding about the hip-deep part.  It honestly took me a week to do.  And shout-outs follow the story.

Oh yeah!  I'm not mad at the Pickle-Jar anymore.  He's not totally evil and he's so cute when he apologises!!  

Disclaimer:  Yeah, I'm back.  Tainz owns nothing.

Kurt:  Not even me.  *sticks out his tongue*

Tainz:  *Cries*  **looks up**  Also, this chapter is dedicated to the memory of my Cat, Baby, who died last fall at the age of 20. 

*************************************************************************

            Rogue led the way into her two bedroom house, flicking on the light as she walked in.  She hadn't taken two steps inside when she was attacked by a flying grey fuzzball.  She heard a distinctive 'bamf' and saw Kurt appear in front of her, crouched into a battle stance and ready to protect Rogue from whatever was trying to harm her.  His tail whipped back and forth menacingly, and the kitten in Rogue's arms mewed frightenedly.

            Rogue looked at Kurt calmly.  "Kurt, this is Baby.  She's mah kitten.  Remember, Ah told you Ah had a cat."  She held out the bundle of fuzz and Kurt relaxed visibly.

            He took a deep breath.  "Hello Baby," he said, as he reached out and scratched the cat under the chin.  

            Immediately, Baby began to purr with a happy ferocity.  She stretched towards Kurt and his face lit up in a grin.  

            "She likes me!"

            "Good.  That means ya can stay.  Ah woulda had ta kick ya out if she didn't."  Rogue grinned happily to show Kurt that she was just kidding.  It had been a week since Rogue had found him in the Place, as everyone now referred to it.  Kurt had only gotten out of the hospital two days previously and, with everything he'd been through, it was no wonder that he took everything a lot more seriously than he had before.

            Rogue handed the cat off to her brother and walked further inside.  "Follow me.  Your room's just through here."

            Kurt followed her closely, nervously taking in his new surroundings as though terrified that they were an illusion that would disappear at any moment.  He stepped on her heels a couple of times, awkwardly murmuring an apology.

            Finally, she opened a white door, revealing a small, yet open and sunny room.  A huge window, complete with a giant window seat, took up most of one of the walls.  A messy desk was set up at one end of the room, and a comfy looking bed was at the other.

            "This is your bedroom.  Ah had been using it as an office, since Ah don't get much company, but Ah'll move mah things out and you can do whatever you want with it."  Rogue piled a few papers on the top of the desk idly.

            Kurt's eyes were wide as he took in the view through the window.  The backyard was filled with tiny crocuses that were starting to peep through the mud and snow.  The sun beamed in warmly.

            Rogue silently congratulated herself on having her neighbour come in and reverse her bedroom with the office.  This was normally her room, but the guest room had much smaller windows, and she didn't want Kurt to be in a room that was at all closed in.  The neighbour had done an excellent job of making the room look as though it had been being used as an office.  Rogue's new bedroom was about the same size, so she wouldn't miss this one too much.  She had known, right from the beginning, that Kurt wouldn't have taken the better room if he'd believed that he was displacing her.

            "This is sehr schön.  Thank you so much."  Kurt spoke softly as he looked the room over in awe.  "Has it taken you long to decorate?"

            "Ah've lived here for about three years now.  Ah haven't had much ta do but decorate.  And garden!  Wait until ya see the gardens out back this summer.  Mah neighbours helped me out, sometimes."

            "Are the neighbours nice?"

            "Very.  Ah have them over for dinner sometimes.  They know about mah powers, so we're all careful.  Of course, that's the neighbours on one side.  The other neighbours are real jerks.  Ya'll wanna be careful around them."

            Kurt frowned.  "Vill they try to hurt us?"

            "They're over the whole violence thing now.  They haven't attacked me in almost a year.  They haven't bothered me at all since they killed mah last cat."

            "They killed your cat?"

            Rogue suddenly realised where the conversation was headed, and she didn't want it to go such horrible places on Kurt's first day home. 

            "Are ya hungry?  Ah don't have the ingredients ta make anything fancy, but we can order Chinese."

            Kurt seemed to relax again at the mention of food.  "Chinese sounds delicious, danke."

            Rogue led the way to the kitchen, where she picked up the phone and dialled a number off of a fridge magnet.

            "Hi, it's Emily Manning?  Yeah.  Ah'm good, thanks.  Yeah.  Uh huh.  Um....  Ah'd like the dinner for four, with extra sweet and sour sauce...  mm hm.  And chicken balls.  Rice and noodles.  Yeah.  That sounds good!  Twenty minutes?  Great!  Ah'll see ya then!"  Rogue hung up to notice Kurt staring at her suspiciously.

            "Vhy did you call yourself Emily Manning?  I thought you were Rogue, my sister."  He looked about ready to kill her if she took a step towards him, so she calmly stepped backwards.

            "Ah am Rogue.  It's just... After the mansion was destroyed, Ah needed a new identity.  The government had called open season on mutants.  Rogue was a revealed mutant.  Emily Manning was an orphan girl who was tryin' ta get through high school while supporting herself, and then survive four years of university, still all alone.  Ah majored in computers, something inanimate that Ah wouldn't be at any risk of zapping and being revealed.  Six years after the Institute was destroyed, they finally passed the Mutant Equality Act, which gave us our rights.  By then, I'd been Emily Manning so long that I couldn't go back to Rogue.  I got my job at the FBI only a matter of weeks after they passed the Act.  Just after the end of the Dark Ages."

            "Vhy didn't you tell me this before?"  His body was still tensed up like a cobra, poised to attack her.

            "It never came up.  I was so overjoyed to see you… I never even thought about how much things have changed in the last ten years.  I lived in them.  You got thrown ten years into the future."

            Not easing his posture any, he sat in a chair by the fridge.  "I think that you had better fill me in."

            Trying to appear as non-threatening as possible, Rogue moved to the chair directly across the table from Kurt.  "Where do ya want me ta start?  There's been so  many changes."

            "Vhat exactly is this "Mutant Equality Act" that you mentioned?"

            "Basically, it gives us exactly the same rights as humans or "X-Gene Negative Individuals."  It also requires us ta prove that we know the full extent of our abilities and know how ta prevent them from harming others."

            "So ve are required to register vith the government.  How is that any better than the Mutant Registration Act?"  Kurt looked utterly disgusted.

            "No.  Not at all.  Everyone is required ta go ta the Testing Offices every five years, whether they're Positive or Negative."

            "Vhat do you mean by "positive" and "negative"?"

            "Human or Mutant.  Mutants are called "X-Gene Positive." Humans are Negative.  We all have ta go, just in case someone shows up a latent ability and because it prevents anyone from bein' discriminated against.  We go, get tested, and come home.  If ya don't know how ta control your powers, ya hafta go ta a special school for a couple of weeks.  They don't even keep records of your bein' there after ya prove ta the testers that you're safe."

            "How do you trust the government that they're telling the truth?"

            "That's part of mah job.  The Mutant Protection Squad is in charge of all mutant related files.  By rights, they should call us the "X-Gene Positive Individuals Protection Squad", but it's too much of a mouthful."

            "You're lying.  Humans vould never accept us on even ground vith them.  You did tell me about your neighbours."  He didn't yell, but he may as well have.  His statement stopped Rogue dead in her tracks as she tried to portray life as perfect for mutants.

            "Lots of them accept us.  Some of them are still... backwater.  Considerin' that the Act only got passed four years ago, we've come a long way.  We even test babies for the X-Gene at birth so they can get special education if their parents want it."

            "And is all this good enough for Magneto?"

            "He's dead.  He died three years ago."

            Kurt looked utterly astonished.  "Vhat about Mystique?  And the Acolytes?  And the Brotherhood?  Vhat happened to them?"

            "Ah don't know.  Mystique disappeared just after the mansion... blew up.  The Acolytes were still doin' their thing until Magneto died.  Then they just kinda.... stopped poppin' up in the news.  The Brotherhood wasn't that organised in the first place.  Ah stayed there a month at the beginnin'.  They didn't feel like fightin' anymore at that point.  Ah think they just thought they couldn't let us win.  Ah got letters from Toad up until a year ago.  He took up showerin' and he was about ta go ta medical school.  Apparently the rest of them went off their separate ways.  Ah don't know where they are now."  Rogue fiddled with the tablecloth as she remembered the month she'd stayed with the Brotherhood.  She'd spent the whole time waiting for Kurt to come find her, but he never had.  She'd been so distressed at losing her family that _Toad _had actually had to remind her about personal hygiene.

            "That's it?  That's... Everything's gone?"

            Rogue started to nod, then shook her head.  "Not quite.  Ah....  Ah kept your parents posted over how mah search for ya was goin'.  They're still livin' right where ya left 'em.  Even have the same phone number."

            Kurt perked up and looked from the phone to Rogue and back again.  "So they know that I am safe?"

            "No.  Ah wanted ta wait 'til ya got outta the hospital so ya could call them yourself."  Rogue pointed at the phone and grinned.  "Ah have the number written down if ya can't remember it."

            Kurt shook his head and didn't even waste time running to the phone.  He teleported right over and started dialling frantically, cursing the slightly clumsy design of his tri-fingered hands.

            Rogue sat in silence until she heard Kurt's mother's voice. 

            "He Mutti!" Kurt exclaimed.

            Tears filling her eyes, Rogue went to the living room, where she could give Kurt his privacy, but snippets of conversation still filtered out to her ears.

            "Weinst nicht, Mutti!  Ich bin gesund und wohl."  

            Don't cry Mum.  I am safe and sound, Rogue translated in her head.  Kurt's parents didn't speak English as well as Kurt did and, over the years, Rogue had learned a fair amount of German by speaking to them.

            Just then, the doorbell rang, and Rogue went to pick up the food.

************************************************************************

            It's that time again!!  That's right... Shout outs!!!!

Kosumi:  Wait for it hon, and it may just happen.  I'm glad you like.

ChaosCat:  You know you like secret spoilers... that way if you don't want spoilers, you can just ignore them!!!

Well, I just imagine that all of his organic material got burned.  So nyah.  And the Gambit-Wolverine's skeleton question is a good one. I think I have an answer.  At the end of the second book of three Ultimate X-Men comics (I'm not good at terminology, so sue me... no... don't) there is a Gambit special.  In it, Gambit appears to charge and explode a guy's head, which, as we all know, he can't do.  How could that work?  Well, Gambit stuck his hand in the guy's mouth, so I propose the theory that he charged the guy's fillings.  Therefore, if you liken Wolverine's _metal_ skeleton to _metal_ fillings, Gambit can charge Wolverine's skeleton.

And yeah... Wolvie does tend to wander.... sometimes for years!

Sigma1:  You're welcome.  Is this chappie more to your taste?

roguehobbit:  I know nothing of the X-Files, so no, Mulder and Scully won't make an appearance.  Sorry!  :)

Freaky Rogue: You're right, but I can't say anymore than that without creating a spoiler.

Rogue151:  Yeah.... I'm good at telling him off.  Luckily, he's also good at apologies.

horses4fun12:  You want one?  Sure!  *Hands you a Kitty Pryde plushie*

Green Eraser:  More Clues.... hmmm.... Ummmm... Kapow!!!  That help any?  I hope so!  And yeah, I'm proud of the pickle-jar thing....  Go me!!!!  I am an empowered woman who doesn't need my bf's approval to live my life!!!!

Blahb:  I liked it.  I'm glad you did too!!!

jacombo:  You're welcome, and I think you got the clue.  The trouble with those translators is that both Karte and Junge have several synonyms....

Lucky439:  I love Kurt too!!!!

ishandahalf:  Thanks for the awesome review.  Unfortunately I can't comment to much without revealing the entire plot of the story.

Gub-man:  She's not going to do either....  It's a little more complicated than that.  Keep reading, and all will be revealed.

Yumiko:  I'm glad you like your prezzie!!!

I love you all!!!

Tainz


	6. Scared of the Dark

                Hey all!!!  I didn't forget you, I just got too busy to write.  Life caught up with me.  I have to go visit a hand specialist on December 18 to see if my tendon problem can be fixed.  My bf's birthday is coming up.  Thanksgiving was this past weekend.  (I'm Canadian.)  I got about 8 billion assignments in school....  You know how it gets.  And I got....  A NIGHTCRAWLER MOVIE PLUSHIE!  My best friend made it for me...  It's really cute.  I call it my bamf doll.

                Anyroad, here's the next installment.  Shout-outs follow the story.

Disclaimer:  Taineyah doesn't own the X-Men, but Stan Lee has given them to her in his will....  Who wrote this script?  It's a blatant lie!!  Tainz has never even met Stan Lee!  And why would he give her anything?  She's just an insane fangirl!

Tainz:  *Looks sheepishly at her feet*  Baaaa!!  Hey!  I've got cute feet!!  Tra lalalalala!  *skips off to chase her plot (who, for some unexplained reason, looks like a baby dragon with a really long tail)*

Disclaimer:  All right then....  *looks confused and runs his hand through his spiky hair*  I guess I'll put the story up on the screen for you.  *jams a red diskette into the floppy drive on the computer*  There.

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                After nearly an hour on the phone with his parents, Kurt finally came out to the living room.  Rogue's tears had long-since dried up and the food was sitting on the coffee table, cold but untouched.  She was watching the news and she didn't look up as he came in.  The story was fascinating.... as well as being completely unexpected.

                The voice of CNN's lead reporter, Cameron Martinez, sounded out over top of footage of Capitol Hill, teeming with people.  "Today it was revealed by reliable sources that a testing facility raided by the Mutant Protection Squad last week was funded by the US government.  Top government officials denied the rumours, saying that the Place, as it has come to be called by investigators, is still being searched for the full story.  Despite such denials, Positives and their families began gathering at Capitol Hill this afternoon, demanding better explanations.  Paula Morikson reports."

                A young blonde appeared on the screen, with the Capitol Building as her backdrop.  "Thank you Cameron.  The Place has been called the worst example of a testing facility discovered since the Mutant Equality Act was put into place.  Some of the Positive individuals held there had been there for more than a decade.  As you might imagine, the topic of the investigation has been highly charged.  Many people want answers now, and the Mutant Protection Squad has been unusually tight-lipped about this particular investigation.  Vice-president Maria Levinson herself appeared earlier today to deny that she had ever signed documents approving of the execution of any Positive individuals."

                Rogue suddenly became aware of Kurt staring at her and she clicked off the TV.  She looked at him apologetically.

                "Is it true?" he asked, voice low.  He didn't sound angry or dangerous, just hollow.

                "Officially, Ah can't tell you.  We don't have the full story.  Unofficially, yes.  Ah'm not supposed ta tell anyone anything, but it'll be out in the open any time now."  Rogue sounded tired and upset.

                "I thought they protected us now.  You told me earlier that they did.  You said ve vere safe."  He was a little bit accusatory, but Rogue couldn't blame him.

                "Ah thought it was true.  Ah really did.  There's still a possibility that the government didn't do it...  It's a slim chance, but it's still there.  Like Ah said before, we don't have the full picture.  It's only been a week."

                "Vhat do you believe?" Kurt asked.

                "Ah don't know.  Ah don't want ta think that Ah've been workin' for the bad guys.  Ah've raided so many testing facilities...  But what if it's true?  What if the government did it?  If they did, why?  Why lie ta us?  Why form the MPS in the first place?  Why not just try ta exterminate us?  It doesn't make sense.  None of our information seems ta agree...  It's really confusin'."  She sounded strained and stressed.

                Kurt searched her face, looking for answers that weren't there.  He saw a lot of pain, and didn't know whether it came from everything she'd tried to put away being torn open again or if it sprang from this new betrayal.  Deciding that it was a little bit of both, he let the subject drop.

                "I'm tired.  I vant a shower.  Vhere do you keep your towels?"  His voice was childlike, pleading for something in a silly, half joking manner.

                Rogue shook her head.  She'd been spacing out a little bit.  "Huh?  Oh...  There's a closet right across the hall from your room.  It's pretty big, but Ah think you can find the towels in it.  The bathroom's right next door ta your room, on the left."

                "Thanks, Rogue."  With that, he walked down the hall, forgetting about food.

                As he walked down the hall, he pondered over the decor.  It didn't seem suited to the taste of the Rogue he'd known... But then, she'd changed a lot.  It seemed more suited to other people.  He saw a bit of what Kitty likely would have preferred, a bit of Jean, Evan.... even himself.

                Opening the closet door, he realised that Rogue hadn't done anything with this house for herself.  It was all done as though she was waiting for the others to come home.  As though she'd never moved on.  When he flicked on the light, he saw that Rogue had understated it a bit when she'd said the closet was "pretty big."  

                He spun in one spot before seeing the towels, which were in the back corner.  He picked his way through the mess, looking interestedly at some of the objects.  A box of painting supplies, including an easel, was just in front of the towels.  One of Rogue's old outfits, from her X-Men days, hung from the ceiling.  From the grime on it, it had probably been what she'd been wearing the day the Institute was destroyed.  

                Finally, he reached the towels and picked a thick, fluffy green one.  As he headed back to the door, he noticed a pile of picture frames leaning up against the wall.  Curious, he went to them and flipped one over.

                It was a stunning water-colour portrait of a sad-looking teenage girl in a pink shirt, hair tied back in a ponytail, staring out a rain-spattered window.  _Kitty, _he thought.  He recognised the curtains as being those of Rogue and Kitty's room back at the Institute.  

                The next portrait, an oil painting, was of a wolf running across a beautiful green lawn, next to what appeared to be a set of identical twin boys.  _Rahne and Jamie_. he realised.  Portrait after portrait revealed long-gone team-mates.  Jean and Scott laughing in the garden.  Logan, Ororo, Hank and Professor Xavier lecturing a very ashamed looking Bobby while they tried to hide their laughter.  Beautiful, happy moments, all of them.  Except the first one.  The one of Kitty.

                No matter how he looked at it, it didn't fit in with the rest.  Kitty wasn't laughing, smiling or looking sheepish.  She just looked sad, which was strange, because he couldn't remember many times when Kitty hadn't been upbeat.  He remembered her laugh, her eyes...  He couldn't believe that her life, so shining and bright, so full of potential, had been cut short like that.

                He was still sitting staring at the pictures when Rogue found him a few minutes later.  She'd gotten worried about him when she hadn't heard him go into the bathroom, so she'd decided to check on him and make sure he'd found the towels.

                "Vhy is everyvun except Kitty happy?" Kurt asked, not looking up.

                "Because Ah decided to paint them that way.  Ah wanted to remember them at their best."

                "That's not vhat I meant.  I meant, vhy is Kitty the only vun who looks sad?"  Kurt looked up at her now, and saw, not for the first time that day, tears welling up in her eyes.

                She took a deep, calming breath and blinked them back.  "That's how Kitty looked the last time Ah ever saw her.  It was mah fault she was sad."

                "How so?"

                "It was pourin' rain out.  It had been for ages, remember?" 

                "It started four days before I left for Washington."

                She nodded.  "Kitty wouldn't shut up.  We'd been cooped up inside for days, and she was bored.  She just kept chatterin' away at me about some party that was supposed ta be comin' up.  Ah got sick of it, and Ah yelled at her.  Just then the rain stopped and Ah decided ta go outside.  That's how she looked when Ah closed the door.  Ah went outside, and the mansion got blown up.  She died thinkin' Ah was mad at her.  Ah'd been snappin' at people all week.  Ah was just frustrated, but she died thinkin' Ah was mad."

                "So you painted her like that because you couldn't forgive yourself?"

                "No, Ah painted her like that so Ah wouldn't forget what Ah'd done.  How Ah'd treated her."

                "You didn't do anything wrong.  It vas vun little fight.  Remember all the times you two vere there for each other?  I'm sure she's looking down on you from Heaven right now and vishing she could tell you that it didn't matter.  She must know that you vere just blowing off steam.  She can't possibly be angry vith you."  

                "Kurt, Ah don't believe in all that.  There can't be a God.  If there were, He wouldn't have made me like this."  She held out a gloved hand.  "He wouldn't have taken away everyone Ah loved.  Kitty's long gone, and her last thoughts were about me bein' angry with her."

                Kurt, whose faith had remained strong despite his years of torture, couldn't understand how she could deny God's existence, but didn't feel like getting into a theological debate.  "I am sorry that you feel that vay," he murmured.

                Rogue opened her mouth to reply when the phone rang and she hurried off to answer it.  After a moment, her voice came ringing down the hall.

                "Kurt, remember those neighbours Ah told you about?  Do you feel like meeting them, day after tomorrow?  We made plans for them to come over here for dinner, a couple weeks ago, and they're just calling to confirm."

                Kurt blinked nervously for a second and took a final glance at the picture of Kitty before teleporting to the kitchen.  "I vould love to," he answered, before 'porting off to the bathroom, towel in tow.

***

                Rogue had only been asleep for a few minutes when a strange sound woke her up.

                _Swish.  Swish_.  

                It sounded like a skipping rope being whirled around someone's head at a high speed.  She sat up, eyes adjusting to the darkness and spotted Baby crouched in a corner, hissing terrifiedly at a dark shape.  It only took Rogue a second to identify the shadow.  Kurt.  The sound was his tail, whipping back and forth.  Rogue flicked on her light so she could see the full picture. 

                Kurt had the kitten backed right into a corner and he was muttering menacingly at her.  Rogue climbed out of bed and, slipping on her gloves and a cover-up, started towards him.  

                "Kurt?" she asked softly.

                He turned towards her voice and she saw that he was asleep.  He started towards her, still muttering, and Rogue wondered what he was doing.  Suddenly, he lunged, grabbing for her throat with one hand.

                "Kurt!" she hollered.  "It's me, Rogue.  Ah don't want ta hurt you.  Wake up!"

                Kurt stopped in place and slowly, his yellow orbs slid open.

                "Vhere am I?  Rogue?  H-h-how did I get here?"  He slumped down into a sitting position on the floor, looking completely terrified.

                She sat next to him and carefully put her arms around him.  "Ya were sleep-walkin' and ya had a nightmare.  It's okay, though.  We'll just get ya back ta bed and go back ta sleep, all right?"

                He whimpered slightly, like a little kid.  "I don't vant to go back there.  It's dark and lonely.  I'm scared that I might have another nightmare."

                Rogue felt so helpless at the childishness in his voice.  She'd rarely seen him without a brave front, regardless of what he was really feeling.  "Tell ya what.  We'll get the air mattress out of the closet and ya can sleep in here on the floor for tonight.  Tomorrow, when we go out ta get ya some more clothes and stuff, we'll buy ya a nightlight."

                "It vill still be dark."  Kurt's face sparkled with tears.

                "Ah'll leave on mah readin' lamp."  Rogue felt like a mother, comforting a child.  It almost frightened her, seeing Kurt like this.

                He was shaking and trembling like a ribbon caught in the wind.  He'd curled himself up into an impossibly small ball and crushed himself against her side.  His tail was wrapped around her waist as though he believed that she'd disappear if he let go.

                Finally, Kurt nodded and Rogue gently disentangled herself from her terrified brother, moving slowly so as to not frighten him any further.  Gracefully, she got up to go get the air mattress.  As she left the room, she heard the distinctive bamf of Kurt's porting and suddenly found him standing right in front of her.  

                "Don't leave me alone in there.  You can't," he pleaded.

                "Ah won't.  Ya can come with me."  She grabbed his arm and guided him down the hall.

                Half an hour and many excuses and crying fits later, Kurt was curled up by the foot of Rogue's bed, sound asleep again.  She watched him sleep and realised that she didn't know how to deal with this.  She'd listened to the instructions given her by the hospital psychiatrist before she brought Kurt home.  She'd been warned of nightmares and sudden fits of violence and anger, but now that she was witnessing them first hand, she found that she needed to find some more information.  She had taken some Psych courses in university, but they hadn't covered this.

                As she lay awake for the next hour or so, watching Kurt's child-like form, she decided that, not only would she get Kurt some new clothes the next day, but that she'd also see about finding him a psychiatrist.  She hated herself for making the decision, but she didn't see any other way.  As much as she hated being analysed herself, and as much as she knew that Kurt would likely hate being forced to talk to a stranger who he probably wouldn't trust, she knew that Kurt's problems were too much to look after on her own.

                Feeling guilty, she finally drifted off, only to have her own nightmares and past haunt her.

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Shout outs!!!

Personage:  Still grinning?  I hope so.  I'm really proud of this chappie!

Gub-man:  I didn't want to deal fully with the whole government thing.... Yet.   Trust me though, all hell can still break loose.  And, yes, there will be information about what happened to Rogue during those ten years.  There's a character (not the psychiatrist) coming in chapter after next, or maybe even next chapter, who will bring all of that out.

Rogue151:  Yeah... I miss her, but she lives on in this story!!  Go me!!  I'm glad you like.

Storm-Pietro:  There will be some interaction with some Acolytes/Brotherhood members at some point.  Maybe it'll be Toad, who's already been mentioned.  Maybe it'll be someone else...  You never know.

Lucky439:  I hope you didn't hod your breath waiting for this update, or you probably didn't get to read it!!

The Pickle Jar:  All is forgiven, love.   And next time you're snog-deprived, find a mirror or a phone or a prostitute!!  Don't flame my story.  And don't tell me if you opt for the prostitute.

ishandahalf:  Quick like a bunny on crack?  C'mon hon, I'm not Pietro!  I have other things to attend to besides my stories... Unfortunately.  And yeah, the rebonding is going to take time.

Halla:  I'm glad you're enjoying.

Yumiko:  You really want Remy that bad?  I'll see what I can do in the near future, kk?

UnknownSource:  I'm glad that you liked his reaction.  I really get into the characters I'm writing and become them sometimes, and it was hard for me to become Kurt in that section.  It's kinda funny when I'm becoming a charcter...  But it explains my German/Southern accent that recently overrode my natural one of Albertan/Maritimes/Ontarian!  LOL!  My parents think I'm batty, cause they don't speak German!!!  Whahahahaha!  

Oh yeah....  Toad is very likely to make an appearance in this.  Very, very likely, thus the fact that he's already been mentioned.  And yeah, the evil neighbours will appear and be bitchy.

Sigma1:  Cheee!!  *Let's you pet the plot, who's all tired and napping-like*  I'm glad you like!!!

ChaosCat:  I love ultimate X-men......  Too bad Kurt's barely even in it.  He only got a cameo as the non-english speaking Bavarian kid.  Poor Kurt....  Everyone abuses him...

Beboots:  The answer to your Darkest Hour question is in your email.  Please help?  I'll give you honourary co-author status???

Caliente:  I like that you like, dude!  And yeah... I do a lot of the sad and dramatic.  I'm attempting comedy in "Kurt and the World's Most Yummilicious Brownies," but it's slow going.  I hope to put another chappie up on it this week.

The Tourniquet:  Yay!!  A new Drama/Angst junkie!!!!!  *does happy dance very similar to the one Kurt does, as seen in the opening credits to the early third season*  I'm glad you like, darlin'!!

By the way all, and yeah, the Pickle Jar told me not to do this but pah!, I'm holding a name the disclaimer contest.  My poor disclaimer doesn't have a name.  To enter, include it in your review.  His physical description is as follows:  Short, spiky black hair, Blue eyes, Semi-dark skin that isn't black or white but somewhere in between, he always wears baggy sleeping pants and a blue t-shirt.  He's a bit of a grump, but even a grump deserves a name, so please enter!!  

                The grand prize is that the winner will get all future chapters of this story e-mailed to him or her the day before they become available to the general public!  You do not have to include your email addy in your review to be considered.  Selected entries will be posted with the next chapter for voting and the winner will be announced in chapter 8.  At that point, I will include my e-mail addy for the winner to contact me.


	7. Familiar Voices

            Sorry this took so long.  Between family crises and Hallowe'en and getting a new job, I had no spare time whatsoever.  Well, I actually did, but I didn't feel like making use of that time for writing after my great-grandmother died.  I was too distracted.

Disclaimer:  Because Tainz hasn't had time to sift through the entries into the name the disclaimer contest, I still don't know which names she thinks are the best, and the voting list hasn't been made.  Therefore, the contest is still open.  She doesn't own any recognisable characters in this story.

Tainz:  Just this once, I'm gonna skip out on shout outs.  It means I'll have twice the work to do next time, but I'm just not feeling like it, and I want to get this posted ASAP.

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            It was almost noon the next day before Kurt and Rogue were ready to go shopping.  Neither of them had brought up Kurt's antics of the previous night, but the subject weighed heavily on both of their minds.  Kurt knew that Rogue was worried about him, and Rogue knew that Kurt was scared of what she might do to deal with him.  

            As they went out to the car, they both turned at a shriek from the neighbour's house.  

            "Not now," Rogue groaned under her breath.  

            The shout had come from the elderly woman who lived there with her husband.  The couple who had killed Rogue's cat.

            The woman appeared on the porch, eyes wide and hands flailing.  "What is that thing?  Some kind of demon?"

            Rogue winced as Kurt froze.  "No, Mrs. Sloane, this is mah brother."

            "Your brother?  That... that _thing_ is supposed to be related to humans?"

            "Mutants are humans."  Rogue's voice was hard and cold.  "And Kurt is not a thing.  He's a person, just like you are."

            "I most certainly am not like you and your kind.  You're all freaks, and the sooner the government has you all killed, the better."

            Rogue gritted her teeth and unlocked her car.  She was determined to just keep moving and get herself and Kurt away before the current situation got any worse.

            The woman kept yelling.  "Those people on the news, the ones that ran the Place, they were absolutely right.  They'd get my vote anytime they came forward.  They ought to be commended for their service to society."

            That was enough for Rogue.  Kurt was standing there, unable to even move, he was so shocked.  Mrs. Sloane was coming to the fence that lined one side of Rogue's yard.

            "Get in the car," Rogue growled at Kurt, her voice sounding more than a little like Wolverine's had. 

            Kurt didn't move.

            "Get in the goddamned car."  She sounded so furious that Kurt couldn't help but obey. 

            Rogue, instead of getting in the car like Kurt expected her to, ran at the fence and vaulted over it, landing right next to Mrs. Sloane.  Mrs. Sloane screamed and started backing away, but stopped suddenly when she realised that Rogue was going to follow her.

            "Ah've taken your crap for too long."  Rogue stood a good six inches taller than the woman, but the old woman would have been terrified even if Rogue had been a midget.

            Rogue peeled off a glove and stared at her hand contemplatively.  "Do ya know what mah power is?"  

            Mrs. Sloane shook her head.

            "With a touch of mah bare hand, Ah can kill someone.  Ah can drain their life, their thoughts, their memories right out of them and if Ah hold on long enough, they'll die."  

            Mrs. Sloane gulped.  "Please...  Please...  Don't...."

            Rogue slid her glove back on.  "Ah don't want your slimy, disgustin' thoughts in mah head.  Ah'm not gonna touch ya."

            The woman's body seemed to deflate with relief. 

            "Ah am gonna ask ya this.  What makes ya think you're better than us?"

            "I am human.  You and all those like you are some kind of animals."

            "Whoever told you that was wrong.  We've lived in the hell you created for us.  Compared ta what Ah dealt with growin' up, you're nothin'.  Absolutely nothin'.  We have feelings, ya know.  

            "When ya killed mah cat, Ah cried.  When people like ya bombed out mah home when Ah was a teenager, killin' just about everyone Ah loved, Ah wanted ta die.  Ah cried for weeks.  When Ah found out that the people you just stood here and commended, the people who tortured mutants, had captured mah brother and tortured him for ten years, Ah wanted ta track them down and kill them.  But Ah didn't.  Because Ah'm not like you.  Mah Professor, the best adult Ah ever had in mah life, he taught me that people like you are just ignorant and we can't hold that against ya.  Do y'understand that?"

            The elderly woman nodded silently.  

            Rogue's face relaxed and her tone became more reasonable.  "Now, Mrs. Sloane, you're not ignorant any more.  Next time ya insult mutants like ya just did, Ah'll call in the Hate Crimes division and the MPS, got it?"

            The woman nodded again, then darted back into her house.  Rogue walked wearily back to her driveway and got in the car.  She slumped into her seat and saw Kurt staring at her with wide eyes.

            "You didn't have to do that for me," Kurt said softly.  "I don't vant to be any trouble."

            "That wasn't just for you.  That was for mah cat and mah gardens that she's killed and for mah goddaughter."

            "Your goddaughter?"  Kurt raised an eyebrow.

            "Ya'll meet her tomorrow night.  She's mah other neighbours' youngest daughter.  The baby in the picture on mah fridge.  She was born a year after Ah moved in here and her parents decided ta have her tested for the x-gene."

            "Is she a mutant?"

            Rogue nodded.  "They befriended me and learned a little bit about mah past, so they knew how much of a shock it is ta suddenly find out you're a mutant.  They decided ta have her and their other two kids tested when she was born.  It seems like she's a spontaneous mutation.  No one else in the family has the x-gene."

            "So they decided to make you her godmother because you could help her vhen she manifested?"

            "Yeah.  Her name's Julia.  She's a sweetheart.  So far, she doesn't have any visible signs of her mutation.  She's a little behind on learning ta talk, but with Anna for her big sister, Ah don't wonder."  Rogue laughed a little.  "Anna's the oldest and she's.... very talkative.  She reminds me of Kitty sometimes."

            Kurt smiled sadly.  "And the third child?"

            "That's Michael.  He's... handicapped."  Rogue frowned, trying to think exactly how to put it.  "He has a lot of trouble telling the difference between reality and pretend.  He gets people and animals mixed up sometimes.  He hasn't been able to even learn his alphabet yet, and he's almost six.  He's a very nice, gentle boy, but he's not all there."

            "I see." 

            Rogue shook her head.  "No, but ya will.  The question is, will Michael think you're a kitty, or a puppy."

***

            Even ten years hadn't lessened Rogue's disdain of shopping, and of course they'd been at it for hours.  She'd bought an entire new wardrobe for Kurt, along with a sewing machine so they could add tailholes to his pants, a nightlight, a small entertainment system for his room and a wide collection of different audio and video disks for him to play on his new entertainment system.  As they entered the grocery store, the final stop on their shopping excursion, they heard an annoying beeping sound.

            "Crap."  Rogue started digging through her pockets, searching for something.

            "Vhat is that sound?" Kurt asked.

            "Mah comlink.  Direct communication so that mah team can get a hold of me in an emergency."  She pulled an earbud attatched to a little microphone out of her inner jacket pocket and stuck it in her ear.

            "Agent Manning, we require your assistance in an interrogation."  Kathy Angel's voice filled Rogue's ear.

            "Why?  The telepaths are more effective.  They don't get their heads screwed up like Ah do when Ah 'interrogate' someone."  Rogue grimaced.  It seemed like every time that she took a day off, she got called in to work anyway.

            "We've got a new informant in here with information about a planned assassination attempt against some major politicians.  Apparently the informant has some training against telepaths, and the information is too sensitive to take any risks with him re-interpreting the truth."  

            "Politicians aren't even under our jurisdiction.  That's what we have..."

            "The CIA and the Secret Service for.  I know.  And it wouldn't be our responsibility if the informant and all alleged conspirators weren't mutants."

            Rogue swore silently.  The last thing that the MPS needed now was another major investigation.  "Fine.  Ah'll be there in 20 minutes.  Just get a visitor's pass for Kurt so he can wait in the lounge instead of the car, okay?"

            "We'll be waiting, Agent."

            Rogue tore the earbud from her ear.  "Damn it, Damn it, Damn it."

            "_Vas_?"

            "Apparently Ah've gotta go absorb someone ta get some information out of them."

            Kurt winced.  "Sorry."

            Rogue shook her head.  It just wasn't her day at all.

***

            After Rogue had delivered Kurt to the lounge, Kathy took Rogue to her office and began her briefing.

            "The informant claims that Raven Darkhölme has re-activated the Acolytes in light of the existance of the Place.  Apparently, she's somehow managed to obtain the records as to which politicians supported the experiments and she intends to kill them all."

            "Ah really thought Mystique'd decided to leave things alone," Rogue said sadly.  "Ah figured the Acolytes were done once Magneto died."

            "As did everyone," Kathy replied.  "Unfortunately, she has yet to be captured, which makes this man's story plausible.  Given Lehnsherr's mindset, it's entirely possible that Darkhölme decided to continue his work.  She may have just been biding her time."

            Rogue stood up.  "Ah'd best just get this done.  Which interrogation room is he in?"

            "Yours.  We took him there as soon as he admitted that he'd been trained against telepaths."

            Rogue walked out of Kathy's office and towards the specially modified room that she used for all of her interrogations.  It had a bed in it, for she person the questioned, as well as a whole range of restraining, sedating and power-inhibiting devices.  Among the devices was the latest model of genetic inhibitor, the least painful so far.  There was also a wall of one way, shatterproof glass that allowed others to observe the interrogation and stop her if something went wrong and she couldn't get control of the other person's psyche.

            Before she entered the room, she stood with her hand on the doorknob for a moment, taking a deep breath to become completely calm.  She looked to the other door, to the observation room, and saw Kathy go in, which was Rogue's signal to make an entrance.

            Slowly, she opened the door and, before she could even see her subject, a familiar voice called, "Bonjour, chere."

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            Please review and don't forget to enter in the name the disclaimer contest!


	8. Leave the Past Alone

                Hey guys! I'm back.  I've barely been living at home lately, so I'm sorry for this being late.  The moment you've all been waiting for is here.  I'm going to announce the finalists for the name the disclaimer contest.  My apologies to anyone who didn't make the cut.  I have three brothers and some of you suggested their names for the disclaimer (all of my brothers' names were actually suggested... and some of their middle names, too).  Some of the other names were also family members, so, I give you, in no specific order, the five finalists (they will be repeated last thing at the bottom of the chapter, so you remember them.  One vote per person, please)

Disclaimer: since I'm about to get named, can I announce them?

Tainz: Sure.

Disclaimer: Here they are... the names I could stand to live with.

                Houdini

                Caleb

                Pickadilly

                Daniel

                Nicodemus

Tainz: Now, Mr. Disclaimer (that's gonna be his last name lol), do your stuff.

Disclaimer:  Recognise it?  That's great, Tainz doesn't own it.

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                Rogue looked at the man sitting in front of her.  Remy LeBeau.  She'd barely even thought of him in years, but the memories came rushing back.

                _"You will be fine, chèrie.  You got people watchin' over you."  _She could hear him say it as clearly as she had that day in the bayou. 

                "Too bad they're gone," she said under her breath.

                Remy blinked.  "Shoulda known dat Rogue and Emily were one person.  Dere only be one _fille_ like you in de whole world."

                "Shut up, swamp rat.  Let's just get this over with."  She approached his position on the bed, starting to peel one glove off.

                "So, you an official good guy now?"

                "Yeah, now shut up so Ah can rhyme off the spiel Ah have ta give anyone Ah absorb."

                "Maybe if de X-Men had lasted a little longer, you all woulda been recognised as good guys."  His tone was meant to comfort her, meant to be sympathetic, but it only succeeded in infuriating her.

                "Shut up or Ah'll absorb ya completely."

                "So, you still got a little bit of de bite de Brotherhood were always talkin' about."  He smiled charmingly, appreciating her.

                "That's all in the past, swamp rat.  Right now, I have to interrogate you."

                "Dat what you call it now?  You t'ink it okay to absorb people for information like your mère wanted, if you call it "interrogatin'"?"

                Rogue sighed, determined not to let him get to her.  "When Ah touch ya, you'll feel like you're dyin' for few seconds until Ah release ya.  Don't be alarmed.  Ah won't hold on long enough ta do ya permanent damage.  If ya struggle and try ta stop me, it'll do both of us more harm than if ya just let me absorb ya peacefully.  After Ah let go, ya may pass out, or ya may merely feel dizzy or tired for a time.  Just rest quietly until ya feel better."

                "Remy already know all dat.  Remember _Mardi Gras_?"  He winked at her.

                Rogue rolled her eyes and reached out.  The initial shock of her powers taking over held her in thrall for a moment, then she started paying attention to his psyche flowing into her mind.  It felt just like she'd remembered, soft and gentle, but with clawed edges that tore away at her defenses.  A cat.  That was what it reminded her of.  At last, she felt the information she needed and she released her grip on his face.

                Taking deep breaths, she pushed away the parts of his mind that she didn't need.  He was also breathing heavily, trying to regain the energy he'd lost to her.

                "Chère, y'take Remy's breath away."

                She ignored him, or she at least tried to.  She couldn't stop looking appreciatively at his t-shirt, which was stretched across his beautifully muscled chest.  She shook her head, chalking it up to his attraction to her manifesting in her mind.

                "Thank you for your co-operation," she said formally, her own accent less pronounced as she tried to avoid any vestige of his accent or speech patterns from showing in her own speech.

                She went out into the hall and then into the observation room.

                "What did you find out?" Kathy immediately asked.

                "She's got the Acolytes back up and runnin'.  She's added members.  Most of the old members and the Brotherhood's there, plus a few new ones."

                "Acolytes, I know, but the Brotherhood?" Kathy repeated, unsure of the meaning.

                Rogue stared at Kathy blankly for a moment before remembering that the Brotherhood had broken up long before Kathy's time.

                "The Brotherhood of Mutants.  It was the forerunner of the Acolytes, but Magneto gave up on them to form the Acolytes instead.  It consisted of five members, Blob, Toad, Scarlet Witch, Avalanche and Quicksilver.  They weren't adept as fighters and, until the day that Scarlet Witch showed up, they never won a battle."

                "A battle with whom?"

                "The X-Men."  Rogue's tone told Kathy that the subject was closed.

                "I recognise the name Quicksilver, but none of the others."

                "Blob was Freddy Dukes.  He had a lot of fat under his skin, which made him virtually invincible.  He was also extremely strong.  He's on the new team.  Toad isn't on the new team and he won't be, either.  He's a doctor now.  Scarlet Witch is Wanda Maximoff..."

                "Wasn't that Quicksilver's last name?  He was Pietro Maximoff, right?"  Kathy knew, from long experience, that Agent Manning knew more about Magneto, Mystique and the Acolytes than anyone else.  Kathy didn't even bother asking how Rogue knew anymore.

                "They were twins.  Magneto, their father, had her placed in a mental institution when she was a small child and her powers manifested.  She had probability-alterin' powers, which were referred to as Hex-Bolts and Hex-Fields.  She could make pretty much anything happen, at anytime she wanted.  She was the only reason the Brotherhood ever beat us."

                "She was mentally unstable?"

                "Not until after she was locked away, from what Ah know.  She was just a normal little kid, but her powers were outta control.  When she managed ta escape from the institution, with Mystique's help, she set out on a single-minded quest ta kill Magneto and Pietro.  She never succeeded, because Magneto had her memories completely changed so she didn't remember what had been done ta her."

                "She's on the new team?"

                "Yeah, and we should be able ta change that by gettin' a strong telepath to put her memories back the way they were.  She might even help us."

                Rogue was quiet for a minute, thinking.  "The other one was Avalanche."  Rogue's voice cracked, remembering how Kitty had always loved Lance, even when she was mad at him for being a hood.

                "Lance Alvers.  He's on the team, too.  From Remy's memories, Lance, who can shake the earth and cause earthquakes, is there to avenge the death of an old girlfriend of his, Kitty Pryde, who died about ten years ago.  He's also the one that convinced Blob to join up."

                "Who are the new ones you don't recognise?"

                "It's a little harder ta figure that out for sure.  Remy _thinks_ with a Cajun accent.  Ah'm pretty sure the first one's called something like Husk.  She..."  Rogue closed her eyes and her voice faltered as she suddenly recognised the young lady from Kentucky.  She'd seen the girl, much younger, in a photograph, years before.  "Her real name's Paige Guthrie.  She changes her skin to pretty much any substance.  She's tryin' ta avenge her brother's death.  Sam died the same day as Kitty Pryde.  There's also a young man named Angelo who can stretch his skin like tentacles.  His best friend's there too.  He's called...Sink?  But that doesn't make any sense to Remy.  His power is to use pretty much anyone's powers, but unlike me, he doesn't absorb it or need ta touch the person ta do it."

                "Any others?"

                "A couple that Remy doesn't have any clear memories on.  Apparently he came here ta tell us what was happenin' pretty soon after Mystique recruited him."

                "So you don't recognise anyone else?"

                Rogue scanned the faces in her mind again and started to shake her head when she thought she recognised a man about her age, with short blonde hair.  "Oh god.... Alex."

                "Who?"

                "Alex Summers.  Ah think he calls himself Havok.  He shoots force blasts from his hands.  His brother, Scott, was killed with Kitty and Sam."

                "Do you have any details?"

                "It's gonna be a widespread attack.  They aren't gonna try ta bust through security when the targets are together.  It's gonna take place over the course of five days, starting April 30.  The Vice-President will be first, targeted at her family's home in LA, courtesy of Angelo.  They don't know where the rest of them'll be, but Destiny's workin' on it."

                "The rest of them?"

                Rogue's eyes widened.  "They know the names of everyone on those files we uncovered at the Place."

                "But... The biometrics system...  Security...  How could they know?"

                "Mystique knew Ah was workin' here.  She told Remy that "Agent Manning" was informing them.  She musta been shiftin' inta me...  She knows me well enough ta fool anyone."

                Kathy hung her head.  "I'll get on the phone.  We've got to get someone after...  Who did you say was trying to find out the locations of the targets?"

                "Destiny.  Irene Adler.  She's a blind mutant who sees the future."

                "Any idea where she is?"

                Rogue thought about it for a minute or two.  "As far as Ah know, she hasn't moved...  She should still be in Caldecott."

                "All right."

                Kathy and the all but one of the other agents left to start trying to track down Destiny, while the remaining agent, Harry Carroll, stayed behind to keep an eye on her.  In addition to his pheromone mutation, he also had limited empathic abilities.

                "I don't think she understood," Harry started, obviously referring to Kathy, "but I listened to it all.  You were the X-Man that used to be in the Brotherhood, weren't you?"

                Rogue's head snapped up to look at him.  "What do ya know about that?"

                "I did my final essay for my mutant terrorism course in university on the Bayville mutants.  I know a bit about the Brotherhood, the Acolytes and the X-Men.  The members of the groups weren't all named in my resources, but I did find some history on each person.  Kitty Pryde, Sam Guthrie and Scott Summers, the three that you said were being avenged, they died with the destruction of the Xavier Institute, didn't they?"

                Rogue nodded silently.

                "So their loved ones would hate the government, wouldn't they?"

                Again, Rogue nodded.

                "Why don't you?"

                That stopped Rogue short.  "Ah...  Ah..."

                "Why are you working for us?  Are you a spy?"

                "No.  Ah had ta work in investigations.  Ah had ta find mah brother!"

                Harry nodded.  "And when you talked about Destiny and Mystique, you were broadcasting affection, among other things.  What's with that?"

                "Ah don't wanna talk about it."

**************************************************************************

So, I was lazy last time and now have twice as many reviews to respond to.  The responses go in order of chapter 6 reviews, to chapter 7 reviews.

Shiva:  Thanks for the cookies.  And what do you think?  The Brotherhood gonna make an appearance?

RogueDragon5:  Kurt and Rogue should never be lovers.

You like Remy being there, huh?  And congratulations.  You were reviewer # 100.

Sakura Marcom:  Thank you for your suggestions.  Please don't hate me for not taking them.  I had a limit.  

Kosumi:  I'm really glad you like the painting.  I know it's kind of a sad story, and it won't necessarily have a happy ending....  That wouldn't leave room for a sequel...  Would it?

DemonRogue13:  Thanks.  The support of my reviewers is all that keeps me going.

Does this chapter come up to your standards??  I hope so.  And there might be Romy in the future, just wait and find out.

roguehobbit:  Those were some awesome names, honey.  And please don't cry.... too hard.  It might impair your vision so you can't R&R!

I'm glad you're excited.  And no, I never put a limit on the number of entries, did I?

Green Eraser:  I'm sorry I took so long.  It was just one thing after another.  You know how it is.  Great names, btw.

Storm-Pietro:  I worship you, after reading Fiery Speed, or is it Speedy Fire?  I can't remember.  Titles aren't my strong point, but it's one of my new favourites.  I'm glad you liked the portrait.  I was proud of that.

Lucky439: Sorry you passed out...  It wasn't my intention.  Glad you like.

Yumiko: You got him.

No, I couldn't tell you love Remy.  I thought you hated him!!  (j/k)

Danfred:  More good names... I got so many of them...

You can't have the hot Cajun.  I need him for my story.  I'll set up a viewing time for you, though.

Personage:  Sorry I couldn't choose Mark for the disclaimer's name.  I have two uncles and a cousin named Mark.  I really liked the idea, though.

How are you so accurate with the future??

Rogue 151:  Eric was Magneto's name, and my cousin's name.  Sorry.  Another good one, though.  I hope it doesn't make you hate this, because I didn't choose you.

I did choose Daniel, though.  And, apparently, Rogue's just calling herself Anna.  It may not be her real name.  No one's sure.

ishandahalf:  Cool beans... I love that....  Thanks!!

You want Romy... I'll seeee if we can't arrange something.  And, as for the Bunny on crack comment, how many times do I have to tell you, I'm not Pietro!  (lol)  And bunnies can be really scary.  Watch Monty Python and the Search for the Holy Grail.  You'll see what I mean!!!

edanielrya:  I haven't had a chance to read Broken yet, but I'm sure it's beautiful.  I can't wait to get a chance to read it.  Don't be in awe of me, please.

AkumakoRonso:  I'm not evil..... Mwahahahahahahahahahahaha!  Oops... time to head back to my "Evildoers Anonymous" meeting.  And angstiness has it's place, _n'est-ce pas_?

ChaosCat:  I'm so glad I wasn't near you to hear that fangirl sqeal!!  LOL  And I'm on your favourites list??  Aw, shucks....  I didn't know you loved me like that.... *blush*

Sigma1:  Like twists, hmmm...  wait till you see where this is going.....

ANKLE:  so that was your shadow....  teach me how to do that, please???

Samantha (x0x0@graffiti.net):  I'm glad you liked the bit with Kurt being scared.  I really don't want it to be "*poof*  Kurt's been rescued and life goes perfectly and happily ever after," you know?

Phoenix147:  The legendary Remy?  Yup!!!  I'm glad you're a fan!!!!

jaygurl1:  I stopped there, but not for too long.  and I want that cookie!!!

Okay, everyone, the final names are, once again, Houdini, Daniel, Nicodemus, Caleb, Pickadilly.

Vote vote vote!!!

Love always,

Tainz 


	9. Never Say Never

                I'm really, really sorry that I haven't updated in a really long time!  First, I got really sick.  Then, my computer did something weird and wouldn't upload files!  When I finally got my computer fixed, I discovered that my disk had been corrupted and the two chapters I'd written were gone!  So, instead of the promised two chapters, you're only getting one, because I have to completely rewrite them.  I'm so sorry!

Disclaimer: Tainz owns nothing you recognise.

Since it's been so long, here's the last line of the last chapter you read:

                _Harry nodded.  "And when you talked about Destiny and Mystique, you were broadcasting affection, among other things.  What's with that?"_

_                "Ah don't wanna talk about it."_

*************************************************************************

                "Do you expect me to take that as an answer?" Harry demanded.  "I have to tell Kathy these things, especially when you take on a new psyche.  I need you to tell me where that affection came from.  Was it yours, or was it his?"  Harry jerked his head towards where they could see Remy through the one way glass,

                "It isn't him.  It's me.  Ah can't tell you why Ah feel that way about them, but it doesn't affect mah judgement and it never has.  That's all you need to know."  Rogue felt a twist of fear in her stomach.  This could cost her her job.

                "I need to know more than that.  I need something to tell Kathy."  Harry had been working with Emil for two years now and he'd never been on the receiving end of her stubbornness before.

                "Well, Ah can't tell you!  There are people who could lose everythin' if Ah tell you."

                Harry couldn't believe her.  Until recently, Emily Manning had been the perfect agent.  She did everything by the book and worked in synch with her team, even if she did keep to herself.  She'd climbed the ranks quickly and now held one of the highest positions a mutant could obtain.  

                She was the talk of the water cooler.  Everyone knew she was beautiful, deadly and intelligent.  They knew that she would be the first mutant to get a promotion if and when the restrictions on mutant ranks in the FBI were ever lifted.  Harry had long fantasised about being able to get closer to her and learn her secrets, but, like all of the agents, he knew it would never happen.

                "Emily...  You've never made it hard to do my job before.  Please don't start now."  

                "Ah can't tell you," she repeated.

                "At least name the people who would be hurt by this.  At least then I have something to tell."

                "Mah brother and me.  Now leave me alone."

                He knew she was often cranky after absorbing someone, but he had to persist.  Her answer was far too vague.

                "If you tell me and I believe that it won't impair your judgement, I can refrain from telling Kathy anything.  As it stands right now, I have to tell her every word of this conversation."

                She spun from where she was watching Remy through the one way glass.  "Ah can't!  Ah can't put mah brother at risk right now.  He only just got out of the Place.  He needs to be protected until he's better."

                Harry sighed.  Various members of the MPS, including him, had been over this with Emily before.  "The doctors told you, he probably won't ever recover.  He was in there too long.  He's been through too much."

                "It's gonna be slow and he'll never be who he was before, but he'll get better.  He will," she protested.

                Harry closed his eyes.  He'd been in charge of sending all of the other victims of the Place to a psychiatric facility that specialised in mutants.  He'd hated doing it, but most of the victims were too dangerous for them to do anything else with them.  "He's going to be dangerous and scared for the rest of his life, Emily.  You should have let us take him to the residential facility.  He'd get better care there."

                Rogue shook her head harshly.  "No.  He wouldn't.  He'd just be goin' from one prison to another and he wouldn't have a chance at survivin'. He'd die in there."  A few tears filled her eyes, but she took a breath and blinked, stopping them from trickling down her cheeks.

                "Emily, what's going to happen to him when you go back to work full time?  He needs care 24/7.  You can bring him with you when you're only in for an hour or two, but what are you going to do with him when you're gone all day, every day?  And what about when you have to go on trips?"  He grabbed her gloved hand.  "Please, listen to me.  As a friend.  You have to let him go."

                She pulled away from him.  "He'll be fine.  Ah've got neighbours he can check in with and he's fine durin' the day.  Just leave us alone."

                He rubbed his eyes tiredly.  Her anger was starting to give him a headache.  "I will.  Just as soon as you tell me what your relationship is with Adler and Darkholme, I'll leave you be."

                Rogue knew full well she was backed into a corner.  Given her behaviour in the last week, she could easily be fired over this.  If she lost her job, she wouldn't be able to support herself and Kurt and she would be forced to send him to a residential facility.  If she told, however, she might lose everything anyway.

                "Ah'll tell you," she finally conceded.  "But you can't tell anyone.  None of this has ever affected mah judgement, except to make me hate terrorists more."

                Harry nodded encouragingly.

                "You already figured out Ah was once one of the X-Men, along with mah brother.  You also figured out Ah was one of the Brotherhood before Ah joined Xavier's students."

                "Yes."

                "Do you remember who the leader of the Brotherhood was?"

                "Raven Darkholme."

                "Right.  Ah once worked for her.  What you didn't know was that... When Ah was a little girl, she adopted me.  Ah didn't even know she was the same person as mah mother until after Ah left the Brotherhood."

                Harry's jaw dropped.  "She's your mother?"

                Rogue shrugged.  "She didn't even raise me.  She left me with a friend of hers."

                "Irene Adler?"

                "Yeah.  Irene could see mah powers manifestin' in the future... What they were gonna be... So Mystique adopted me so when Ah was old enough she could use me."

                "Why the affection, then?"

                "They still looked after me when Ah was too young to look after mahself.  Ah still have some good memories of holidays and stuff, even if it was all just a way to get to me."

                "I see...."  Harry trailed off, then another thought hit him.  "She adopted Kurt, too?"

                Rogue shook her head.  "No.  She gave birth to him and dropped him off a bridge.  He got adopted by a nice German family."

                Harry blinked.  "Oh.  So... You just want to see them gone?"

                "Mystique, Ah hate for all she did to us.  Ah still feel love towards the memory of mah mother, but Ah can never forgive her.  Irene, Ah like okay.  She protected me as much as she could.  Ah could forgive her, given a chance.  Thing is, if she's workin' with Mystique again, she ain't worth it.  She deserves anything we can do to her."

                Harry could feel the raw pain and anger in Emily's mind.  She truly didn't want to help her parents.  Since he was fully aware of this, he decided that he didn't need to bother Kathy with it.

                "Fair enough," Harry finally replied.

                Rogue went back to the one way glass and looked through it to Remy.  "What are we gonna do with him?" 

                Harry saw the abrupt subject change for what it was, a way to keep her own life private.  He went along with it.  "Kathy signed the release orders. We're sending him back out.  He'll be rejoining the new Acolytes and reporting back to us in the hopes that he'll be able to reveal new information."

                Rogue's face took on a look that said that, had she been drinking something, the room would have been sprayed with liquid.  "Kathy did what?!?"

                "She signed the release orders.  We'll be escorting him from the building in a few minutes."

                "That wasn't a release order--it was a death warrant!  Mystique will kill him."  Her voice sounded calm now, as though she were merely stating a fact about the weather.

                Harry looked at her blankly.  "Mystique won't even know that Mr. LeBeau's been here."

                Something akin to a laugh leapt from Rogue's lips, but it was far too bitter to ever be linked to humour.  "Just like she didn't know who we were investigating for involvement in the Place?  Just like she knows nothing about God only knows how many confidential files?"  She snorted.  "It's like sendin' a lamb to the slaughter.  We're murderin' him."

                Harry's face blanched.  "What can we do?  Kathy won't revoke the order.  She won't send him into hiding.  He assured her that Darkholme had no clue he'd come here."

                "Let me escort him by mahself.  Ah can tell him a few things that might save him."

                "Like what?  You can't reveal details..." He got cut off.

                "There's no regulation that says Ah can't give him mah address and home phone number."  She looked at him pleadingly, willing him to allow her this.

                Harry contemplated this for a minute.  "Do you really want him in the same house as your brother?  I mean...  Look at the guy."

                Remy was wandering the little room, examining the restraints and inhibitors.  The way he moved seemed to scream criminal.

                "Mah place is probably the one place he'll be safe.  Mystique has no qualms about hurtin' us, but Ah don't think she'd kill me or Kurt.  And Ah'd protect this guy with mah life.  Worst comes to worst, he could be the difference between us winnin' and losin'."  She seemed lost in thought, looking at a possible future that Harry couldn't begin to see and ready for a battle he waasn't prepared to contemplate.  "Besides, Ah owe him one.  He kidnapped me when Ah was a teenager."

                Harry was silent for a minute taking this in.   "You owe him a favour because he kidnapped you?"  He sounded sceptical.

                Rogue nodded.  "It's a long story, but he inadvertently saved me from doin' mahself harm by runnin' away or... maybe worse.  He showed me that mah friends really did care about me after Ah did somethin' Ah really shouldn't have."

                Harry had just opened his mouth to reply when the phone rang.  It was Kathy, telling them to take Remy outside.

***

                Kurt had been crouched in the back corner of the lounge for over an hour, watching the comings and goings of the people Rogue worked with.  They all noticed his presence and none of them seemed impressed by the fact that he was there.  A few of them blatantly glared at him, but he could have been imagining it.  At least none of them seemed frightened by his presence.

                He was busy watching one of the people get something from the vending machines, so he didn't notice Rogue come in and sit on the chair next to his position.  

                "You ready to go?" she asked.

                He jumped straight up and clung to the wall near the ceiling.  After taking a second to catch his breath, he climbed down.

                "Are you okay?" Rogue asked, concerned.

                He tried to smile, but it didn't work.  "I just don't like this place very much.  There aren't enough windows and there are too many people."  Though he didn't say it, it was painted painfully clear on his face that he had been worried she had forgotten him.

                Rogue took this in stride.  She should have guessed and known better than to have left him in here by himself.  "Want to take off?  We gotta finish the grocery shopping, then we can go home."

                Kurt nodded shakily.  "Ve don't vant the neighbours to have to eat leftover Chinese, do ve?"

                Rogue smiled as they stood and started out of the building.  "And you might like some home-cooked food.  Ah remember how much you like sausages."

                At this, Kurt grinned full out.  "And I remember the look on your face when I used to serve them to you.  You really hated them."

                "Ah got over it.  Ah've changed a bit, grown up some."  She gave his upper arm a squeeze.   "You'll be glad to know that, short of the world comin' to the end, they won't be callin' me in to work until Monday."  It was only Thursday.

                "How did you manage that?" he asked as they passed the last security checkpoint to leave the building.  

                "Ah had a little chat with mah boss, Kathy."

                Kurt stopped in mid-step and turned to her.  "You glared at her, didn't you?"

                Her brow furrowed in amused confusion. "Probably.  Why do you ask?"

                "Ve vere all terrified of you vhen you glared."

                She laughed, almost feeling care-free.  "Ah remember.  Ah used to hear y'all whisperin' about mah 'death glares.'  It was so funny that you guys were that terrified of me."

                By then they were in the car and they drove off to the grocery store, some of the happier moments of their adolescence coming up in conversation for once.

************************************************************************

So, ummm... yeah.  That's it... the latest chapter!  Don't forget to vote in the name the disclaimer contest!  Caleb, Nicodemus, Pickadilly, Houdini, Daniel.  Pick one!  This is the last chapter open to voting. 

Next Chapter:  The big dinner with the good neighbours!

Sorry about the wait!

Shout outs:  This is the fast version, so you'll get to read this faster.

Everyone:  I love you all!  Please review again!  It is only your support that keeps this story alive!  *cookies to all*


	10. Of Laughter and Tears

                I know I gave you a new chapter the other day, and I know that this one is really long.  I really wanted to get this out.  There's some happiness and some angst.  I was gonna divide this in two, but I couldn't find a good place to break it, so you get all seven pages at once….

Disclaimer:  Tainz owns nothing.

*************************************************************************************

Kurt carefully arranged his hair in the mirror.  Even though he'd had a hair cut since leaving the Place, it was fairly long.  He'd left it about chin-length and now he was trying to arrange it so it would hide his demonic features.  Fangs, golden eyes....  What he wouldn't have given to have his old image inducer.  Rogue assured him that no one would be frightened of him, that her vote of confidence in him would be enough to reassure her neighbours, but that didn't change his fears.  

                Three of the people coming to dinner were children and therefore unpredictable.  Rogue had already told him that Michael was handicapped.  What if he terrified the children?  That was the last thing Kurt wanted.  

                As he pulled a few strands into place, his fingers hit a line stretching down his left cheek, one that was rendered invisible by his fur.  It was the first scar...  The first thing they'd done to him in the Place.  He fought against the memory that overcame him.

                _Kurt hides in the back corner of his cage.  He's often been told that no one can see him in shadows and he prays that these people are no exception.  Perhaps they'll think that he's escaped and leave the cage door open so that he can really escape.  He pulls himself into a crouched position, ready to spring the second the opportunity shows itself.  It must be several days since he's gone missing.  Maybe if he can at least cause a ruckus that is visible from outside, the X-Men will be able to find him._

_                The door opens and he notices that the people are wearing strange goggles...  He's seen them before, on soldiers in movies.  Infrared-spectrum sensitive.  They're able to see his body heat.  He sighs in defeat.  Another plan destroyed._

_                One of the men picks him up as he kicks, screams and swears in several languages.  He wrapps his tail around the man's neck and squeezes it as hard as he can, but it seems to have no effect.  The man grabs his tail and drags him out of the cage by it.  _

_                Tears of agony, shame and anger choking off his angry words, Kurt's scrambling and fighting form is hauled into a surgical-looking room filled with glistening steel.  So far, all of his captors have been silent.  As he is strapped down, however, he hears a voice he will never forget._

_                "I want to see what the bone structure is under its face.  I need better images than the x-rays have provided.  Open it up."  The voice is low, gravely and sinister, but tinged with excitement.  It is now burned into Kurt's mind for all eternity and it is one he'll get to know as a regular intrusion into his hearing, something he'll hear nearly as often as the screams of his fellow inmates._

_                Strong hands hold Kurt's head still and sharp clamps bind his tail to the table.  A lancing pain shoots down the left side of his face and he feels blood gushing through his fur before he passes out.  When he wakes up later, he is back in his cage, or at least, one just like the first one and neat stitches trace a line from his jawbone to the edge of his eye socket.  The pain is still agonising and will remain for so long that he becomes accustomed to it and is able to ignore it long before it goes away._

Kurt drew in a shuddering breath and looked around his room.  There was nothing to be frightened of here.  The voice was gone from his life and he'd never hear it again.Rogue wouldn't let them take him.  She'd protect him.

                Suddenly, a loud ringing interrupted his thoughts and he reflexively teleported to the last place he'd seen Rogue.  When he appeared in the kitchen, she was just checking the roast beef they were having for supper.  She looked over at his panicked face for a second.

                "It's only the doorbell."  Loud noises still startled him, she knew.  "If you put this back in the oven, Ah'll go get it."

                Kurt nodded in agreement.  They'd gone over what was going to happen a few times, so he wouldn't be so nervous, but it didn't seem to help.  Rogue was going to bring everyone into the living room and introduce him.  When she said his name, he was to come in and see everyone.  He wondered, for a second, if Rogue would be angry if he just stayed in the kitchen.

***

                "Ah've told you before.  Doorbells are for strangers, not family!"

                Rogue opened the door to admit her friends out of the cold April rains.  She was immediately assailed by two small forms.  She wrapped her arms around the tops of their heads and slowly shuffled backwards to let everyone else in.

                "Aunt Emily!" the shortest of the two children hugging her murmured happily.

                The other one looked up with a beautiful coffee coloured face, dominated by dark eyes which sparkled keenly with intelligence.  "Guess what Aunt Emily?" the little girl asked, grinning.

                "What is it, Anna?"  Rogue ruffled the curly dark hair of the little boy clinging to her leg.

                "Mummy said I might be allowed to get a puppy and Jenny said I could go stay at her house overnight on Saturday and my teacher's taking us to a museum with real live dinosaur bones and...."  Here, the little girl was cut off by Rogue's laughter.

                "Slow down, sugar!  You have all night to tell me this."

                Anna toed the carpet sheepishly.  "Sorry."

                "It's okay.  Why don't you help Michael with his boots and coat and take him into the living room?  We'll all catch up in a minute."  Rogue disentangled the little boy's arms from around her upper leg.

                Anna's face brightened as quickly as the sun after a quick afternoon shower.  "Okay!"

                The two oldest children thus engaged, Rogue took the youngest from her mother's arms.  The little one's dark skin was a stark contrast to her mother's almost Nordic skin tones.

                "And how's little Miss Julia?" Rogue asked, swinging her goddaughter around playfully.

                With a broad grin, Julia laughed and kicked her feet happily.  Rogue let the two and half year old down and helped her unzip her jacket.

                "How's it been?" Rogue asked the two adults standing before her.

                Luke smiled, his bright white teeth almost blinding against the darkness of his skin.  "Hectic.  The spring always gives Michael and Anna cabin fever.  I'm amazed the house is still standing."

                Melissa nodded her agreement.  "I've been taking them to the park after school whenever it isn't raining, but it just isn't enough."

                They laughed together.  

                Lucas's expression changed to one of sheer excitement.  He'd obviously remembered something.  "Julia actually said a full sentence yesterday.  She asked if she could please have a cookie."

                Rogue looked proudly at Julia.  "Is that true?"

                Curls bobbing around her head, Julia nodded happily.

                "Then it's a good thing Ah made a special cake for dessert, isn't it?"

                Julia licked her lips, causing the adults to burst into peals of laughter again.

                Melissa looked at Rogue seriously.  "When's he getting here?"

                "He's here.  He's just waitin' for me to introduce him so he can meet you guys."

                Luke looked at her questioningly.  "Who is he, anyway?"

                Rogue took a deep breath, trying to alleviate her own worries and nerves.  "Ah'll explain when we get to the livin' room.  Just remember... no matter what you think when you first see him, Ah'd never let anyone near you or the kids that was a danger to any of you."

                Melissa's brow furrowed.  "You've warned us of that about four times now.  Why is it so important?"

                "You'll understand when you see him."  Rogue led the way into the living room, holding Julia's hand.

                When they got there, Anna had already put on Finding Nemo.  She and Michael were absolutely absorbed, so it came to them as a huge shock when the screen went blank.  They turned in one motion to look at Rogue who was holding the remote.

                "Fishy..." Michael said sadly.

                "Ah have somethin' to say to all of you, then Ah promise you can watch the fishies, okay?"

                The children nodded and their parents sat down on the couch next to them.

                "Ah have someone Ah want y'all to meet."

                Anna stood excitedly on the couch.  "You have a boyfriend, don't you?  You're gonna get married!  I call flower girl!  I want a pink dress... no... a blue dress with a pink ribbon... and I want to carry roses.... no... those little white flowers.... Baby's Puke?"

                "First of all, it's baby's breath.  Second of all, no, I don't have a boyfriend."  Rogue could feel Melissa's sympathetic look.  Rogue had once confided to her friend her desire to have a family.  "This is someone far more special."

                Anna opened her mouth to go off on another tangent, but her father pulled her into his lap and gently covered her mouth.  "Let Aunt Emily speak, sweetie."

                "It's mah brother.  His name is Kurt Wagner."

                This was Kurt's cue and he came in quietly, head down and tail twitching nervously a few inches above the ground.  There was a gasp of astonishment, which Rogue feared would make him teleport away, then the source of the gasp, Michael, launched himself at Kurt.

                Rogue held her breath.  How would Kurt react?  Would he fight the child off?  Would he simply 'port to another area of the room?  To Rogue's relief, Kurt stood his ground and let the little boy hug him.

                "Stitch!" he exclaimed. 

                Rogue smiled.  She hadn't thought of the fact that Kurt's blue fur gave him something of a resemblance to the main character in the movie about the little Hawaiian girl and her pet alien.

                Anna, however, wasn't so easily swayed.  At eight years old, she felt that she knew a few things about the world and something didn't quite fit here.

                "You aren't Aunt Emily's brother."  Hands on her hips, she stood and started towards him with her nose in the air.

                "Vhy do you say that?" Kurt asked, sure that the little girl hated him. 

                "You don't look anything like her!  Me and Michael and Julia at least got the same skin colour.  You're blue!"

                "Vell..."

                Anna wasn't finished yet.  "And you don't sound anything alike!  You sound... I dunno... French or something!"

                "Vell, Rogue is adopted," Kurt said.

                "Besides," Rogue cut in. "Kurt's German, not French."

                Anna turned to look at Rogue.  "Who's Rogue?" she asked.

                Rogue laughed.  "Ah am.  When we were teenagers, everyone called me Rogue.  They didn't know mah real name.  Even now, no one does."

                "It's Emily."  Anna spoke with the certain wisdom of a child.

                Rogue shook her head.  "No.  Ah chose that name just after Ah saw Kurt last."

                Anna took in this new revelation.  "You mean...  Your mummy and daddy let you call yourself whatever name you wanted?"

                Not wanting to get into the details, Rogue nodded.  "Ah guess you could say that."  When she saw the look on Anna's face, she added, "That doesn't mean you get to."

                Anna's face fell.  Finally, she looked Kurt over again.  "I'm Anna."

                Kurt bowed politely to her the best he could with Michael stuck to his side.

                Rogue took this as her cue.  "The little guy stuck to you is Michael."

                Kurt nodded and looked at him.  

                "This is Melissa," Rogue said, indicating her friend, who was looking at Kurt with some shock.

                Melissa collected her wits. "I'm sorry for staring," she apologised.  "I've never seen anyone quite like you before."

                Kurt smiled and shrugged.  "There are few who have, fraulein."  His smile faltered when he saw how much she looked like Kitty.  Her hair was a little lighter, but she could have been Kitty's sister.

                Rogue noticed and quickly introduced Luke.

                "A pleasure to meet you," Kurt responded.

                A look of shock passed over Luke's face when he shook Kurt's hand, but it was quickly erased.

                Rogue pulled Julia out from behind the end of the couch, where she was hiding.  "This is Julia.  You'll have to excuse her.  She's a little shy."

                Rogue started to take the little girl over to Kurt, when Julia buried her face in Rogue's neck.  Rogue felt the slightest whisper of her powers pulling at the child as Julia's forehead brushed the skin of her neck above her high sweater.  Quickly, she gave Julia to her mother and stepped away.  Julia seemed fine, and it wasn't the first time such a thing had happened, so Melissa just held her daughter for a second before setting her down on the couch.

                Anna was staring intently at Kurt.  "You went to school with Aunt Emily... I mean... Aunt Rogue... Whatever.  She told me a story about how her old friends could do special tricks.  What can you do?"

                Kurt bared his teeth playfully.  He'd always loved performing and he'd always loved children, so he decided to goof around a bit with this inquisitive girl.  "I can be very scary.  Grrr."

                Anna giggled.  He looked like a clown, as far as she was concerned.  "That's funny!  What else can you do?"

                He lowered his head secretly.  "I can disappear with your brother and reappear right behind you.  It's called teleportation."

                "Like telephone?"

                "Nothing like telephones," he replied.

                She raised her head royally.  "Show me."

                Kurt looked at her parents.  "May I?  I can assure you it vill not do any lasting harm."

                They looked at Rogue for confirmation.  "Ah've used his powers before.  Michael might be a bit dizzy for a second, but it's a short distance and the dizziness won't last."

                Luke nodded reluctantly.

                Kurt winked at the girl and disappeared in a puff of smoke.  She was so busy exclaiming about the smell that she didn't hear him reappear behind her.  Suddenly, someone tapped her on the shoulder.

                She shrieked, startled and turned around laughing.  "That's a great trick!"

                Michael looked around for a second or two, disoriented by his sudden change in location.  He coughed and held his nose.

                Everyone laughed.

                "If y'all can excuse me for a minute, Ah have some things to do to get dinner ready."

                Anna, Michael and Kurt settled down on the couch and Anna grabbed the remote control.  "Fine with us," Anna said.

                Julia scrambled from her seat on the couch and moved to where her father was now sitting in a chair.  She seemed a little frightened by Kurt, but Rogue sure it was more shyness than anything else.

                Melissa stood.  "I'll give you a hand."

                Rogue nodded in appreciation as Luke explained that he'd stay with the kids and make sure they didn't give Kurt a hard time.

                Rogue and Melissa went to the kitchen together.

                "Why didn't you tell me about him before?" Melissa demanded.  "Where's he been?"

                "You heard about the Place on the news?"

                Melissa nodded.  "I couldn't help thinking about how horrible it would have been if Julia were in a place like...."  Suddenly Melissa's mind made the connection.  "He was in there?"

                "Ten years.  He spent ten years there.  Ah thought he was dead...  Logically.  But I couldn't let go of him.  Ah was afraid if Ah told you....  That it'd seem real...  That Ah'd give up on him.  Ah wasn't ready to give up.  Ah'm sorry."

                Melissa sighed.  "I understand.  At least, I understand as much as I can.  I can't imagine what your family must have gone through."

                Rogue blinked back tears.  "They never knew.  Well, our mother probably did, but she was never a mother to us.  The family that counted, they never even knew he was missing."

                Melissa was confused.  "Did you never tell them?"

                "Ah couldn't.  Ah was...  Ah was the only survivor.  They got bombed out, first victims of the Dark Ages."

                "Oh my god!  I'm so sorry.  I knew something had happened that you didn't have contact with them anymore, the way you break off when you're talking about them.  I just assumed you'd left them or something."

                "It's okay.  Nothing can change it now.  There's nothing to apologise for."

                "You poor thing.  It must have been horrible, dealing with it on your own.  How did you manage on your own?  It would have killed me."

                Faces crowded Rogue's vision, memories.  "Logan always said Ah was a survivor.  Ah guess he was right.  He made me that way...  Ah tried to kill mahself a few times in the first couple of weeks.  Mah powers would go nuts and Ah'd manifest everyone Ah'd ever absorbed, Logan included.  His power, the ability to heal quickly, always saved me."

                _Blood covers the Brotherhood bathroom, too much blood.  Bottles of pills lie open next to a bloody razor blade, all of which sit open on the floor nest to Rogue's body.  Suddenly, all of the objects in the room start flying around her and her wounds close.  Spikes fly from her arms and a thin sheen of frost springs from her fingertips.  Slowly, she sits up, bawling and screaming to a god she doesn't believe in anymore.  The pain of healing is agonising,_ _but even worse is the knowledge that no matter how many times she tries to make it all go away, the pain of living will remain._

                Melissa stirred some vegetables on the stovetop.  "Where did you go?  If it was the beginning of the Dark Ages, no one would have taken you in."

                Rogue sighed.  "Ah stayed with the Brotherhood for awhile.  For some reason, no one bothered with them.  Those first few months... They had to force me to shower and eat.  It was like Ah was living in a dream.  Ah'd get up every morning and go to the rubble of mah old home, the Institute and dig through it, looking for survivors.  It took me weeks to even find Logan's skeleton.  It was the only thing Ah ever found.  Ah lived like that, looking for only one thing, determined to wait for Kurt to come home...  But Ah never found anyone alive and Kurt didn't come."__

_                A teenage Rogue digs through rubble frantically, her gloves torn from sharp stone and twisted metal.  Her fingers bleed while Lance pulls her away._  _She struggles against his hands._  

                _His voice is choked_ _with tears.  "They're gone, all of them.  Kitty, Jamie, they're all gone!  You can't keep this up."_

_                "Logan's still in there!  He has to be!"_

                _"He's dead!  Just like the rest of them!"  Lance doesn't see the fist swing towards his face and an instant later, he's lying on the ground, unconscious._

                _"Don't you ever fuckin' say that again!" Rogue yells at his still form._  _She turns back to the pile she was working on._

                Rogue's voice took on a far away quality, as though she'd forgotten that Melissa was there.  She'd never told the whole story before and now that she'd started, it was as though it all had to escape her lips.

                                "Ah don't know what did it, but Ah sorta snapped outta the whole thing one day.  Ah didn't want to wait around anymore.  Ah couldn't stand to be in Bayville.  Ah stole mahself a motorcycle and took off.  Ah kept mah hair up under a bandanna, because people recognised me from the newscasts when mutants first got revealed.  Ah rode and kept riding.  If Ah needed gas or food, Ah stopped and did an odd job or two, collected mah money and took off again.  Ah went everywhere.  Ah travelled for almost a year like that, living hand to mouth."

                _A gang of teenage boys surround a single girl on the motorcycle.  _

_                "Hey.  You aren't thinking about leaving our turf without enjoying our hospitality," one of them sneers, grabbing for her chest, as one of his friends grabs her shoulders to hold her in place._

_                Her hand flashes out, glove off.  Bare skin connected with bare skin and the boy collapses to cries of "Mutie!"_ _as his friends run away._

                _Rogue guns her motorcycle to life and tears off.  She hasn't gotten any money here.  She's hungry.  She's cold.  The only luggage in the side bags of the bike are a few pieces of clothing, the outfit she was wearing when the world exploded before her._

                The memories were as fresh and painful to Rogue as though they had just been yesterday.  "Ah went to the other students houses, at least the ones Ah could remember where they were.  Since Ah carried the psyches of most of the students, Ah found most of the ones in the States and Canada."

                _Rogue stands in front of a farmhouse.  Jamie's parents are in there.  This is going to be the hardest meeting so far.  Jamie had always been one of Rogue's favourites.  They had something in common.  Their powers kept them out of crowd situations.  She walks up the front steps and knocks on the door.  A kind looking woman with more than a passing resemblance to Jamie opens it.  _

_                "Hello?"_

_                "Ah'm here about Jamie," Rogue says._

_                "Is he okay?  We haven't heard from him in ages."  The woman's eyes betray her worry._

_                "Mrs. Madrox, Ah'm sorry to have to tell you this, but Jamie was killed in an explosion in April._"

                _Mrs. Madrox sways on her feet for a few seconds before she collapses to the floor and sits there crying.  "My baby.  My poor baby..."_

_                Rogue stands there helplessly.  "Ah'm so sorry."  She turns away in pain and heads back for her motorcycle._

                Rogue remembered meeting up with the parents of her classmates and being the first one to tell them that their child was dead.  She'd been so used to it at one point that she could tell it to a sobbing mother without leaking a tear or choking up.

                "Ah checked with all of them, hoping Kurt had gone there.  He hadn't, of course.  Finally, one day, Ah couldn't do it anymore.  Ah was scared and alone.  Ah had no home and no friends.  Ah was only 18."

                Tears were flowing freely down Rogue's cheeks, all the tears she'd never been able to shed in the days of her travels.  "Ah remembered the name and address of a woman in Scotland.  The professor'd always said that if we couldn't find him and the other adults for some reason, we were to contact her.  Ah wrote her a letter, begging her to come meet me in Central Park.  Ah had no way of knowing if she'd come, or if she'd gotten the letter, but Ah waited there on the appointed day."

                _Rogue sits on a bench next to the Imagine mosaic.  It seems appropriate to her that the meeting place she's chosen is a memorial to a man like the Professor, a fallen peacenik.  People stand nearby, snapping pictures of bored kids and a few buskers played John Lennon songs on battered guitars, cases set out to collect money.  The lyrics of the song Imagine fill the air._

_                "Imagine no possessions, _

_                I wonder if you can,_

_                No need for greed or hunger._

_                A brotherhood of man._

_                Imagine all the people,_

_                Sharing all the world."_

_                "Ah wish," she mutters, listening to a young girl with reddish brown hair sing the song.  The girl seems so carefree.  She actually seems to believe the words she sings and, behind heavy purple-rimmed glasses, her clear blue eyes are full of tears and hope._

_                Rogue is so absorbed in watching her that it startles her when someone taps her on the shoulder._

"Suddenly, this little woman came up to me and sat down on the bench with me.  It was her.  Moira McTaggert.  It turned out that Rahne, one of the other students, was her foster daughter.  She'd only sent Rahne back to America the previous week.  She sat with me for awhile, then offered to take me back to Scotland.  Ah went with her, and she took care of me for the next year.  She tutored me to get me through the last couple of months of high school that Ah'd run out on."

                "She had everyone's phone numbers, even the kids overseas.  We called all of them and let their parents know what had happened.  She put me in contact with Kurt's adoptive parents.  She kept me from givin' up on life.  It took a year, but finally Ah was ready.  Ah took on a new name, Emily, and she helped me get into a good University.  She offered to pay for it, but Ah'd already taken too much from her."

                _Rogue throws a check back on the table, startling Moira._

_                "Ah'm not takin' this.  Ah owe you too much already."_

                _Tears fill the woman's eyes.  "Take it.  It was Rahne's university money.  I want ta see it go ta good use."_

_                "Ah don't need it."  Rogue walks out the door, heading for her room._

                "Ah got through University workin' odd jobs...  Ah helped shingle roofs in the summer, shovelled walks in the winter.  Ah worked the midnight shift at a convenience store.  Finally, Ah graduated and just a little while later, the Dark Ages ended.  Ah took a job with the FBI in the hopes Ah'd be able to find out what had happened to Kurt.  Ah guess it paid off in the end."

                Rogue was sitting on a high stool by the sink, looking out the window.  Her eyes were clouded with tears.  "The worst part wasn't that they were all dead.  It was that Ah could still hear them.  Ah had bits of their psyches in mah head.  A couple of them were so bitter.  Ah lived and they didn't.  Oh god!"  Her face dropped into her hands and Melissa wrapped her arms around her friend's shoulders.

                "Emily...  You should have told me.  Oh Emily.  It's all over now.  Mutants are free now.  They'll never be persecuted in this country again.  You're safe."

                She kept her voice strong and motherly, but Melissa couldn't help worrying.  What if it wasn't all over?  Was this what her daughter would one day go through?  Would Julia see her friends die?  Would Julia be killed?

                Melissa brushed the thoughts from her mind as Rogue raised her head and wiped her eyes.  

                "Ah just...  Ah just want to thank you for not gettin' upset over Kurt's appearance earlier.  People used to freak out when they saw him and he was real nervous about meeting you."   Rogue's voice was already steady and, aside from a little redness on the rims of her eyes, no one would ever have been able to tell that she'd been crying.

                Melissa smiled as best she could, given all she'd just been told.  Her friend didn't open up very often and she always followed it with something unrelated.

                "I just remembered how hard it was for us when we first started out," Melissa said.  "People used to stare at Luke and me because we were a mixed race couple.  It made me really uncomfortable.  I know it's not the same, but it's got to be similar."

                Rogue smiled sadly as she mashed potatoes.  "Just... thanks."

Hey!  Review!

Love,

Tainz


	11. Life Ain't a Walk In the Park

Curse the real world adn writer's block!!!!!  That's why this took so long to get posted, I swear!!!

Nicodemus Disclaimer:  At long last, we have a winner in the naming contest.  the winner is: roguehobbit!!!!  Please email Tainz at dragonsinger2@hotmail.com to collect your prize.  Tainz can't send it to you without your email addy.  By the way, Tainz owns nothing you recognise!!!

************************************************************************

                The phone rang at 7:00 Monday morning, much to the annoyance of Kurt and Rogue.  Rogue picked up the phone next to her bed and Kurt's head popped up over the footboard to watch.  He still hadn't gotten through an entire night in his own room and the air mattress was still on Rogue's bedroom floor.

                "Hello?" Rogue mumbled into the receiver.

                Melissa's voice answered loudly enough that Kurt could hear it clearly.  "Emily?  I have a problem.  The pipes burst at Anna and Michaels' school last night and there's no heat, so the school's closed.  The babysitter's overbooked and can't take them.  Luke left on a business trip at 4 this morning and I have a presentation to make on that mall I designed.  I can't postpone it. Can you look after them?"  The speed at which she spoke would have put every phone-addicted teenage girl on the planet to shame.

                Rogue's eyes opened a little wider.  "Ah can't.  Ah'm goin' back to work startin' today, remember?"

                "Crap," Melissa said.  "What am I going to do?  The only people that would even consider taking Michael are the Sloanes, your neighbours on the other side.   And you know I won't send any of my children there.  Who knows what _she_'d do to them if they mentioned that Julia was a mutant."

                Kurt's head tilted to one side.  "Vould she let me look after them?  I am sure that I could."

                "Hang on a sec, we might have an idea," rogue said, then covered the phone reciever with her hand.  "Are you sure?  Michael's a handful and...  What if you got scared?  You can't even sleep on your own."

                Kurt nodded.  "I know.  But I only get scared when it's quiet or I'm alone in a strange place or when it's dark.  I don't think that Anna and Michael will let it be quiet or leave me alone and someone else will be home before dark.  I can cook and keep an eye on kids.  How hard can it be?"

                Rogue snorted.  "Harder than it sounds.  You gotta watch Michael constantly and Anna is a huge distraction."

                "I can manage," he said.

                Rogue thought for a minute, then uncovered the phone receiver.  "Melissa, would ya let Kurt look after them?"

                There was dead silence for about thirty seconds.  "Okay.  Tell him I'll bring them over about 8:30?"

                "Ah will.  Bye."

                Rogue hung up the phone.

***

                Rogue had been gone for half an hour and Kurt had the tv on loudly, watching cartoons when the doorbell rang.  It made him jump, but he quickly remembered where he was and what was going on.  He answered the door, admitting Anna, Michael and Mellissa, who was carrying Julia. 

                "Are you sure you can handle this?"  Melissa asked.

                "Ja." 

                "Julia will be at the babysitter's.  She's been booked there for weeks.  Don't worry about it," Melissa said, noticing the look Kurt gave the youngest child.  He was a little scared of her.

                "Okay."

                "You can't let Michael eat anything with red dye in it.  I already gave him his medication, so you won't have to deal with that.  It'll kick in in a few minutes.  Anna doesn't have any allergies.  If they get too hyper, you can take them to the park on the corner.  Anna knows the way.  Ummm... If you have any problems, my phone number's on the fridge, on the emergency list.  I helped Emily make it up.  Any questions?"

                Kurt blinked, processing all the information.  "It's Michael that's allergic to red dye, right?"

                "Yes."

                "Have they had breakfast?"

                "Yes.  They'll probably be hungry again soon, though."  She put a backpack on the floor.  "There are some extra clothes for Michael in there if he gets dirty.  I should be back around 2."

                Kurt nodded.  "I think that I have got it."

                "Great.  Thank you so much."  Melissa smiled slightly.  "You're a real life saver."

                "No problem," he replied.

                Melissa dashed out the door with Julia and Kurt turned to find the other two children... missing.

                _Good one,_ he thought.  _You aren't even watching them ten seconds and you've already lost them._

                "Anna?  Michael?" he called.

                There was no response and he headed towards the living room.  They weren't there.  He looked in the kitchen.  Anna was standing on the counter handing a box of Cheerios to her brother.  Kurt heaved a sigh of relief, then teleported over near Anna and lifted her off the counter.  She shreiked in his ear.

                "If you vere hungry, you only had to ask."  Kurt put Anna on the floor.

                "Sorry," Anna replied. 

                Kurt turned, and again, Michael was missing.

                Anna noticed the look of fear on Kurt's face.  "It's okay.  We were just getting our Cheerios so we could go watch cartoons.  Aunt Emily doesn't even like Cheerios, but she says they're better for us to snack on than chips, so she buys them for us to  have when we're watching tv."  The little girl pointed to the kitchen door.  "He'll be in there watching whatever's on the tv.  He's probably waiting for me to go change the channel for him and find something he likes."

                Kurt relaxed and they went to the living room.  Sure enough, Michael was curled up on the couch watching The Bugs Bunny and Tweety Show, which Kurt had found in Rogue's DVD collection.

                "What cartoon's that?" Anna asked, wrinkling her nose.  

                Kurt was shocked.  "You mean... You don't know Sylvester?"  He launched into a fast explanation of the various characters.

                They ended up watching about five episodes, then Michael started running around the room, bouncing on furniture.  "Park!  Park!  Wanna go to Park, Stitch!" he chanted.

                Kurt sighed.  "Get your things on to go outside, then."

                Michael whooped and hollered as he ran for the front hall.  Kurt helped the boy with his gloves and boots and jacket, then Kurt pulled on the full length black trenchcoat he and Rogue ahd bought the other day.  Even if mutants were accepted now, Kurt didn't feel completely comfortable showing off his tail and colouration.  He pulled on his own gloves and a baseball cap and the three of them headed outside.  

                He made the children hold his hands and Anna all but dragged him down the sidewalk. Finally, they came to a street corner and, across the street, there was a huge playground.  They crossed and then he let go of the children.  They immediately ran to the highest climber. 

                Kurt walked all the way around the play area until he found a bench where no part of the playground was out of his view.  A woman was sitting there, too, watching three children of her own.  As he watched, he became aware that the new kids knew Anna and Michael and they were careful to include Michael in their games.

                The woman turned to him.  "Are you a friend of Melissa and Luke, or of Emily?"

                He kept his face turned down so that the peak of the cap covered his blue skin.  "I'm Emily's brother."

                "Oh!  I didn't realise she had a brother.  I'm Janet Webster."

                Kurt reached out a hand to shake hers.  "I'm Kurt Wagner."

                "You're from Germany?  Or is it Austria?"

                "Germany.  I'm staying vith Emily."

                Janet nodded, grinning.  "How interesting!"

                Kurt smiled back, even though she couldn't see it.  Anna called to him and he rushed over, fearing that she or Michael had been injured.  As he ran, his hat blew off.

                "Vhat's wrong?" he asked as he arrived.  "Are you hurt?"

                Anna looked disapointed.  "I was hoping you'd telephone over.  Mitchell and Jenny and Kris don't believe me that you can telephone."  She pointed at each child as she said their name.

                Kurt was puzzled for a moment.  "Telephone?"

                "You know, the smelly smoke thing."

                "It's teleport, Anna, and I don't do that in public.  It scares people."

                He noticed that Mitchell and Kris, the two new boys, were gawking frightenedly at him.  "Vhat's wrong?"

                Kris, the oldest, stuttered.  "You... You...  You're a devil!"

                Kurt shook his head.  "Nein.  I'm a mutant."

                Janet appeared at Kurt's elbow at this point.  "What are you doing!?!  Scaring poor defenseless children?"

                "I'm sorry, fraulein.  I didn't mean to."  Kurt hung his head.  

                Janet searched his face harshly.  "I believe that, but you still should have warned them.  You have to be careful."  

                Kurt shrugged.  "I thought Anna or Michael was hurt."

                She sniffed.  "I want you to please stay away from my children."

                Kurt nodded.  "I'll take Anna and Michael home."

                "No, you can stay.  I'll take my kids."

                A sinking hole seemed to appear in Kurt's stomach.  She was being polite about it, but it was fairly obvious that Janet didn't like him.  He hated his mutation.  It was what made her fear him.  He knew it.  A piece of legislature couldn't change people's feelings about mutants.

                The three children and their mother walked away, mother comforting two frightened little boys.  The little girl, however, looked back over her shoulder and grinned at her friends and their babysitter.

                Kurt played on the climbers and swings with Anna and Michael for about an hour, then they headed home to get lunch.  He hadn't wanted to play, but he felt bad for scaring off their friends.  When they got home, he put on another Bugs Bunny and Tweety cartoon and then made macaroni.  

                Michael and Anna successfully redecorated half the kitchen with theirs after Michael dropped some on the edge of his chair and discovered that macaroni would stick to things.  Kurt gave Michael his spare clothes and put Michael in the bathroom to change.  After a few minutes, Michael came back out with his shirt on backwards, but he was so proud of having dressed himself that Kurt let him leave it that way.

                While Kurt cleaned up the lunch mess, Michael fell asleep on the couch.  Kurt went to the big closet that contained Rogue's artwork and found Candyland.  He and Anna were playing it on the living room floor when the front door slammed open and Rogue came rushing through.

                "Rogue?  Shouldn't you be at vork?" Kurt asked.

                "I don't have time right now!"  Rogue had her cellphone out as she hurried to her bedroom.

                "Anna, watch Michael for a minute," Kurt said, then followed his adopted sister.

                The bedroom door was open a crack and Kurt pushed it open and went in.  Rogue was talking to someone on the phone.

                "Ah know you got a kid and a husband to think about, but you gotta get over here now!  No... No!  They aren't mutants.  They're not in trouble here.  No...  Jubilation Lee-Channing, you listen to me!  They've invoked the Clause...  Yeah.  That's right.  They're gonna force us to register...  Come on!  It's only an hour's drive!...  No.  Tell Ed to take care of Elysia.  You're in danger...  It's only you, me and Kurt left outta all the X-Men.  Ah'm gonna need you to help train...  Well, Ah can't contact Evan...  Yeah, Ah'm gonna have other people comin'."  Rogue ran a hand through her hair.  "Jubilee, you gotta come.  We agreed on this just after Ah bought this house.  Good.  Ah'll see you in an hour and a half."

                Rogue hit the End Call button on her phone.  She turned to Kurt.  "Ah thought Ah told you Ah didn't have time."

                "I'm not leaving until you explain what the Clause is and who they're gonna force to register."  He was pretty sure he'd already figured it out, but he needed to hear it.

                "The Clause was some politician's bright idea.  It's an exception to the Mutant Equality Act.  Basically, if a mutant terrorist group threatens the sanctity of the USA, mutants can be rounded up, registered, interned, detained, or any combination of the above.  Ah only have an hour before it goes public."

                "How did you find out so early?"

                "They've suspended all mutants employed by the government, with pay, until further notice."

                "Sheisse," Kurt muttered.  "Who are the terrorists?"

                "Mother dearest is in charge of them."

                Kurt gasped and heard an identical gasp behind him, followed by a shuddering sob.  He turned and saw Anna standing there.

                "The Clause?  But... Julia!  I heard Mummy and Daddy talking about it awhile ago.  Will they hurt Julia?"  

                Rogue hurried over and gave the little girl a hug.  "No one's gonna hurt Julia if Ah can do anything about it.  Ah won't let them.  Right now, Ah gotta make some phonecalls and Ah need you and Kurt to go to the livin' room and watch over Michael."

                Anna nodded.  "Okay.  I'll..."  She burst into a fresh bout of tears.

                "It's gonna be okay.  Ah promise."  Rogue gave Anna another hug.  "Kurt, get her out of here."

                Kurt teleported himself and Anna to the living room.  Rogue settled down on her bed and dialed her cellphone again.

                She got an answering machine that told her that Mortimer, Kevin, Jason and Gord were out.  "Todd.. Ah mean... Mortimer, get your friends and get to mah house, ASAP.  We got problems."

                She hung up again, hoping that Todd would come in from a class and get her message soon.  He had several mutant friends at the university where he was attending medical school and when Rogue had first contacted him, he'd agreed to bring them as backup, should they ever have to fight for their rights again.

                Rogue dialed the phone again.  She only had two more people to call.  Betsy and Melissa.

************************************************************************

So.. yeah.  Shout out time!

Danfred: Nowhere near the last of Cajun hotness.

stAte: Thanks for your review.  Well, you now know that the war is almost here.

roguehobbit:  You won the name the disclaimer contest!!!  email me at dragonsinger2@hotmail.com. Also, Evan will be explained later, but not now.

ishandahalf: I am a Romy fan and yes, the kids' reactions were fun!  I loved writing them!!  Sorry about making you teary-eyed.

edanielrya:  Hahaha!  You think all wil be right in the world?  Well, it might, but I'm not telling yet!

~*~Phoenix147~*~: I can't make any guarantees about Kurt's future well-being.  Either way.

Jurt:  Ummm.... Yeah.  Then don't read it, bub.  I will never put Rogue and Kurt together.  It _would_ be incest, since I'm playing them off each other as brother and sister.

EternalStarlight:  Sorry to make you sad.

Radical Chic: Thank you soooo much for your awesome compliments!!!!!!!  They made my day!

DemonRogue13: I didn't mean to make you cry!!

RogueDragon5: Thanks for your compliment.  I will read Everything when I get a minute.

crazyspaceystracey:  Hey!!!  How you doin?  I promised you I'd update today and here it is!!!!!!

Love,

Tainz 

Nicodemus Discalaimer


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